Ranma½: Legacy
by Dreamweaver4121
Summary: Mousse makes an important decision regarding his heritage and Akane learns an...interesting secret regarding hers. Complete
1. Chapter 1

"Curse you, Ranma Saotome!"

There were secrets all over. People, of course, had all sorts of skeletons in their closets they made sure no one ever find. Places were no different. If one looked deeply enough, they could find things unimaginable in places where they least expected. So it was with Hikaru Gosunkugi who only a few days ago, delving deep in the bowels of Furinkan High school, found what appeared, to him, to be a treasure room. With a candle in hand, Gosunkugi investigated this strange, forgotten area and it wasn't long before he had a wide grin on his face. Arcane symbols were drawn all over on the walls and floors. On the wall farthest away from the entrance, there was a bookshelf littered with half opened scrolls. The center of the room was taken up with a bench of some sort. Gosunkugi figured it was meant for a prisoner...or perhaps a human sacrifice, as each edge of the bench had a restraint nailed into it.

But what really caught Gosunkugi's attention was the book that was on the bench. The book looked as though it were hundreds of years old. The pages were written in a language unknown to him, but they seemed to radiate with an unusual power. Apparently, that room used to house a coven or something, where the members would gather and try their hands at dark magic...and this book was the source of their power. Gosunkugi had long dreamt of something like this happening to him. All of his previous attempts at magic had failed. All of his schemes to get that wretched Ranma Saotome out of the way of his beloved Akane Tendo had failed.

Things would be different, starting now. With this book in his possession, Gosunkugi would make all of his dreams come true...starting with Akane. It took him countless hours deciphering the language written in the book, but with the help of the scrolls, he made headway at a remarkable pace. He placed unlit candles on the floor around the largest of the arcane symbols drawn and sat himself just in front of it. With the book in his lap, he started his chant. He couldn't wait to see the look on Saotome's face when Gosunkugi's creature attacked.

"By the power of the tome of Aternia, I call upon the denizens of the underworld!"

Suddenly, the candles lit up by themselves and the circle they were placed around began emanating a bluish glow. Gosunkugi's throat went dry and his heart began to race. It was working. It was really working!

"I call you forth and bind you to the words of Aternia! I call you forth to do my bidding! ARISE!"

The room was closed off with no means for air to circulate; yet a near gale wind began to blow. The light from the circle grew blinding, forcing Gosunkugi to avert his eyes. Finally, he was going to have his first taste of success! His patience and perseverance were finally going to pay off! And Saotome was finally going to get what was coming to him! The wind had died down. Taking a chance to open his eyes, Gosunkugi noticed the glow had as well. It was finally time to meet his new minion.

He turned his head back to the circle and...

Nothing.

He looked around the room, "Huh? Wha...what's going on?"

The circle, he noticed, still had a faint bluish glow to it. From it, he heard a voice...

"Thank you for calling DemCo. We're sorry, but all of our agents are busy helping other customers. We value your business and will answer your summoning in the order in which it was received. Again, we're sorry, and thank you for calling DemCo. Your number one source for monster summoning, possessions and tentacle ravaging."

Gosunkugi facefaulted.

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 1

Mousse sighed heavily. He sat with his arms and legs crossed, trying his best to meditate, but he wasn't getting far. It could have been because his mind kept wandering back to the love of his life, Shampoo. Or it could have been because he was 'sitting' upside down, with the crown of his head embedded in someone's roof. Of course, since that was Shampoo's doing, that would cause his mind to dwell on her as well. He couldn't understand why, after all this time, he wasn't making headway with her. Shampoo was no fool. She should've recognized by now that the object of her affections, Ranma Saotome, had no interest in her. Why was she so determined to chase after him?

Something in the back of his mind wondered the same thing about his pursuit of Shampoo, but, as usual, he ignored that bothersome voice. His pursuit of her was different. He knew it was just a matter of time before Shampoo could see what a jerk that Saotome was...that he doesn't have any feelings for her. When that did happen, he wanted to be there for her. Once that happened, he knew she would also see what a great person he was. She would recognize how blind she had been all that time and fall head over heels in love with him.

Of course, he expected her to have seen all of these things already. Why she couldn't confused him to no end.

Finally, Mousse popped his head out of its crater and jumped down to ground level. Meditation was useless. Besides, his work shift was starting soon, and that old woman, Cologne wouldn't be very forgiving to him if he were late. He wondered why he put up with that dried up monkey's abuse like he did. He knew the answer, of course...Shampoo. But with her abusing him just as much, he wondered if it was all worth it. The answer was always yes. However, that 'yes' had been coming up slower and slower lately.

Abruptly, Mousse stopped. There was a twinge in his senses, noting incoming danger. Quickly, he reacted by grabbing a dagger from his volumous robes and throwing it behind him. There was a 'twang' shortly after, denoting a metal blade striking another. He found his dagger impaled in the house he was perched on before. There was another dagger sticking out of the ground. Scanning the rooftops, he spotted a figure not too far away...and what a figure it was.

It was a woman, with long, blonde hair that was straight on top and curly on the ends. She wore a long, sleeveless Chinese dress with a split that went well up to her hip. However, she had black leggings that covered all the split intended to show. Her arms, which should have been bare, were also covered by long, black sleeves, which were as volumous as his own.

"Well, well..." the girls said. "Who would've guessed I'd run into someone here who also uses hidden weapon techniques."

"Who are you?" demanded Mousse.

"Your next challenger!" she responded. "Prepare yourself. The next time we meet, we will duel!"

After laying down her challenge, the newcomer leapt away. Mousse stared at her until she disappeared over the horizon. "What in the world was that about?"

The final school bell of the day rang and all of the students of Furinkan High school dispersed to their various homes. Two of the students, the ever popular Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo were among them. However, for some reason, Ranma stopped in the middle of the crowd and looked up into the sky. If Akane didn't know better, she'd swear he was daydreaming about something. If, indeed he was, it was the first time Akane ever witnessed such a thing from him.

"It's such a nice day out, Akane," mused Ranma. "Don't you think it's a shame to have to spend it in that stuffy ol' school?"

Akane tilted her head to the side, "Sometimes. But our education is important."

"What for? I mean it's not like we're gonna need it for anything."

"What makes you say that? We'll need what we learn here to make it once we get out in the real world...to support ourselves."

"Ain't we gonna run the dojo?"

A smile crept on Akane's face. Ranma let it slip that he saw the future with the two of them together. One of the things that always irked Akane regarding Ranma was the way he thoughtlessly blurted out whatever came to his mind. But every once in a while, he would, just as thoughtlessly, blurt out something that made her feel...gushy inside. She wondered if he even realized what he said.

"What's with that goofy look on your face?" went Ranma.

Akane huffed and turned away, "Nothing. Look, the plan is to run the dojo when we're ready, but we can't base our entire future just on that. Think about it this way...let's say you were challenged to a martial arts duel. Which would be better? Going into it with just one move, or going in with a lot of moves to work with?"

"Duh, having a lot of moves."

Akane nodded her head. "Why?"

"Because you can't put all your hopes in just one move. Your opponent will eventually learn it and learn to counter it. And when that move is taken away from you and ya got nothin' to fall back on, you're beat. But if ya got a lot of moves to work with, you're more versatile and can find other ways to win."

"Exactly!" Akane said. "It's the same thing in this case. What if something happened to the dojo and it was taken away from us? Without any other skills to fall back on, we'd be in really bad shape, right?"

Ranma's eyes lit up. "Wow...you're right! I never thought of it that way!"

Akane smiled. "So, no more talk about skipping school?"

Ranma shrugged, "I guess not."

"Good. Now, let's get-"

"WHY?" Everyone still at the school stopped in their tracks at the loud wail. Gosunkugi appeared, seemingly out of nowhere with his head buried in his hands, bawling profusely. "WHY MUST THIS ALWAYS HAPPEN?"

Akane blinked, "Geez...what's wrong with him?"

"Probably another hair brained magic scheme of his blew up in his face," laughed Ranma.

"Well, whatever. Let's just get home, before something stupid happens."

The day was, indeed, lovely. The sun shone brightly in the sky, with not a single cloud to mar the scenery. A very good thing, Ranma noted; no freak rainstorms to pop out of nowhere, triggering that annoying curse. It was a day for a romantic stroll, if one were so inclined. The birds were flying, singing their happy songs as they did so. The cicadas were buzzing as they feasted on the various plant life. The explosions rumbled softly in the background.

...Explosions?

Out of nowhere, one of Ranma's rivals...the one with the most peculiar name; Pantyhose Taro landed in front of them, coming down from the patented martial artist super jumps. Startled, Ranma and Akane jumped back a step. Taro gave the two a glance and with a smirk, he leapt away again. Before they could even wonder what that was about, something else landed in front of them...one of Happousai's coconut-like bombs. No words could escape the couple's lips before it exploded.

"Does this count as 'something stupid'?" coughed a singed Ranma.

"Yeah. Something like that," answered a similarly overcooked Akane.

To add insult to injury, the diminutive martial arts master himself, came down from his own super jump and landed squarely on top of Ranma's head. "Oh, hi there Ranma! Akane! Didn't see you down there. You wouldn't happen to know where Taro went, would ya?" The extra crispy couple pointed to their left, indicating the direction of Taro's escape. Hot on the trail, Happousai bounded after his prey. "Thanks kids! See ya later!"

Ranma muttered, "Much later, I hope."

"Okay, let's get home before anything ELSE stupid happens," Akane said.

As they walked away, the sounds of battle resumed behind them; more explosions along with various, unintelligible yelling. There was one shout in particular, though, that came through loud and clear from Taro, "If you think you're going to get me with that water from the spring of drowned man, you're crazy!"

Ranma stopped, his ears perking up. The old freak had water from the spring of drown man? Golden opportunity for a cure! It would be a shame to waste it on Taro. He dropped his bag and started back towards the fight. "Hang on, Akane! I'll be right back!"

Akane stopped also and rubbed her temples. As always, the stupid stuff was unavoidable.

"Come back here and take your bath like a man!" yelled Happousai. "Once I lock up that nasty curse of yours, you'll never be a thorn in my side again!"

"It doesn't matter what you do to me!" returned Taro. "I'll come back again and again and I'll NEVER stop, until you change my accursed name!"

"We'll see about that!" Happousai procured another cluster of his coconut bombs and tossed them at his opponent. With the bombs falling towards him in every direction, Taro covered up to protect himself from the resulting explosions the best he could. Unfortunately, the blasts took their toll, leaving the young, Chinese man stunned. "This is it, my boy!"

Before Happousai could launch his final, liquid assault with the cursed water, Ranma jumped between the dueling warriors. "Hey!" went Ranma. "He don't want that water! Why doncha give it to me?" He made a grab for the vial of water Happousai had in hand, but with his other hand, Happousai used his pipe to snare Ranma's outstretched arm, tossing him away with ease.

"Go away, kid! Ya bother me," said Happousai.

Turning his attention back to his real opponent, Happousai found himself with Taro's fist buried into his face. "I'll say one thing about fem-boy," Taro started, with his usual smirk, "he makes a wonderful distraction." The force of Taro's punch dislodged the vial of cursed water from Happousai's hand. It began to fall...

…Towards Akane.

Time slowed down. The entire outside world disappeared. Akane couldn't perceive anything other than the vial plummeting towards her. Her eyes widened and her heart pumped so hard, it felt as it would burst through her chest. Suddenly, everything became clear. She had always wondered why Ranma hated his curse so much. 'What's so bad about being a girl' she would ask him. With the possibility of being cursed herself, she understood. It wasn't necessarily about being a girl. It was about being something other than she really was...looking in the mirror and not recognizing yourself. With the nature of the curse, it was also about the embarrassing times...the inopportune times the alternate form would pop up. Before, she couldn't really understand the negatives to Ranma's curse, but now, facing the possibility of being cursed herself, Akane recognized just about every negative there was to being cursed. And, she was facing the possibility of experiencing every one of those negatives unless she moved.

She wanted to move. Her mind screamed for her body to move, but her legs felt as if they were made of lead. Her mouth went dry and her blood ran ice cold as the vial came closer and closer. Unable to actually pick her feet up, she drug one behind her just enough to be caught in one of the cracks of the sidewalk. She tumbled backwards just enough so that, save for some splatter that fell on the lap of her skirt, the cursed water fell harmlessly onto the ground.

The danger had passed, but the fear hadn't. Akane hadn't noticed she was holding her breath until she was panting heavily. She also hadn't noticed when Ranma came to her side, but there he was, a look of terror on his face that, surely, mirrored her own.

"Speak to me, Akane!"

"R-Ranma?"

"A-are you okay? Y-you ain't a guy or anything, are ya?"

Akane checked herself. Everything that was supposed to be there was still there. "N...no. I'm still me..."

Ranma breathed a sigh of relief and stood up. His fear ebbed, replaced by an unimaginable fury. His teeth were clenched tightly and his whole body trembled. His aura came to life and danced about, as bright and as hot as fire. The look he held in his eyes was like that of a wild animal.

As much as the thought of being cursed scared her, this frightened her even more. Ranma was one of the strongest fighters she knew. He going off in an uncontrolled rage with his ability...who would be able to stop him? She knew he would be upset about losing his cure, but to this extent?

"Damn you..." Ranma growled. He turned back to the two combatants and his ki flared. "YOU STUPID JERKS COULD'VE CURSED AKANE!" Focusing his considerable aura into his hands, he fired, blasting Taro and Happousai back to wherever they came from.

"Wha...me?" Akane stuttered. Ranma turned towards her and the stared intently at each other. Her fiancée had a look on his face like he was an officer in the military who had just failed an important mission and was begging forgiveness. "Ranma..."

He helped her to her feet, picked up his schoolbag and began trudging homeward. "Let's go..."

Home at last. Akane flopped down on her bed and just sat for a moment. Even with everything that had happened to her since she started attending Furinkan High, she had never been that frightened before. The thought of being that close to such a life-altering event still unnerved her. She took a couple of deep breaths to calm herself.

She was also very concerned about Ranma. He couldn't bring himself to look her in the eye after the incident. She could tell he was very distraught over the whole thing. She couldn't believe that he would get that upset...not at losing his cure, but because she was almost cursed. It wasn't like him.

Akane looked at her desk, towards the picture they took on Togenkyou...the one encased in the frame Ranma got her as a Christmas present. 'That's not true,' she thought. 'It was the same then too. Ranma had his cure right in front of him, but chose me over it.'

He was always like that; so protective of her...usually at his own expense. And she was usually so unfair to him in return. Well, that wasn't exactly true either. They were protective of each other from everyone else, meanwhile, they got on each other's nerves. Akane knew what she felt for Ranma and with the little slip at school, it was clear to Akane what Ranma felt for her as well. If they cared for each other so much, why are they usually at each other's throats instead of in each other's arms?

Maybe it was for the benefit of everyone around them. If their fathers knew, they would force the two of them to get married immediately. Even though she did care deeply for him, she knew they weren't ready to be married yet. She figured Ranma thought the same. Beyond that, there was everyone else in town who were after their hearts. She could just imagine what a disaster a wedding would be with Kuno and all those girls around.

She wished the situation were different; that they could be more honest to each other about what they felt. Akane lay back in her bed and closed her eyes. Her mind wandered, imaging what that openness would be like. That part just after Ranma blasted Happousai and Taro to kingdom come and they looked each other in the eye. He helped her to her feet and held her in a firm embrace. He would whisper how he was sorry he didn't protect her better, to which she would placate his guilty feelings with a soft caress of his face. After telling him that she was alright and he didn't have to worry about it anymore, she would lean into him and place her lips onto his for a soft kiss...

"..." Akane eyes popped open. Something was wrong...very wrong. She looked down at herself. Past the two bulges on her form that were supposed to be there, she spotted a third that...wasn't.

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Akane stomped out of her room and down the stairs. The rest of their family was in the living room, but Ranma was nowhere to be found. "Where is he?" she demanded.

"Ranma's taking a bath right now..." answered Kasumi. But before she warned Akane that she couldn't go in, she charged through the bathroom door.

Knowing what was coming next, the rest of the family found themselves outside. "It's been a long time since we've been on a training trip, ay, Tendo?" Genma said.

"Right you are, Saotome," Soun agreed. "We can't just sit around, playing games all day! We must stay in top form to face whatever dangers lie ahead!"

"I just remembered I borrowed a book from Dr. Tofu," Kasumi chimed in. "I better see to it I return it to him before I forget again."

They all turned to Nabiki. She shrugged, "What? I just don't want to be in there once they start up."

This was just what he needed to get over the stress of the day. Clad only in a towel, Ranma waited for the bath to fill. If he never saw Happousai or Taro again, it would be too soon. In fact, at that moment, he didn't want to see anyone. He just wanted to enjoy his relaxing bath, get some food and go to sleep, putting an end to the day.

It was bad enough those jerks were throwing those stupid bombs around, but the way they were cavalierly waving that water around...didn't they know how dangerous it was? If Akane hadn't fallen over when she did...

Akane...she seemed very distraught over the whole incident. He couldn't blame her. He reacted the same way just before he was cursed. He was just glad that she wasn't afflicted. Of course, now, he had to face the fact that he lost yet another opportunity to be cured. "Feh...it just seems to be the way my stupid life goes," Ranma mused.

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

And there it goes again. Sounded like Akane finally got over her shock and was royally POed…and of course, she was looking for her favorite punching bag. Ranma had to think quickly. She had already thumped her way downstairs. It wouldn't be long before she barged in.

He looked at the window right above the tub. He didn't like the idea of traipsing around town in nothing but a towel. What if Shampoo or...heaven forbid, Kodachi found him? Oh well...better the unkown than the pain he knew for sure was on its way. He made one step towards the window, when the bathroom door flew open.

Ranma knew it. Akane was fuming. It was too late. He wouldn't be able to make it out the window before she could reach him. Akane looked him over, as if to figure out what to stomp on first, but as she did so, something in Akane's features changed.

Akane looked him over again, drinking in every detail. The way his pigtail lazily dropped around his neck; his broad chest and shoulders glistening from the steam of the hot water; his lithe, muscular arms and legs; and that towel that covered so many other interesting tidbits. Involuntarily, Akane licked her lips.

Unaware of the change, Ranma stood there, wondering where the beat down was. He knew she was still upset by how red her face was...or was that a blush? Nah...not from Akane. She was very, very mad. That had to have been it. But usually, she would've attacked him by now...or at least started yelling. All she was doing was looking at him like...like he would look at dinner?

She crept closer, trying to make up her mind about exactly what to do with her visibly confused fiancée. As she got closer, Ranma did notice something out of the ordinary...a small protrusion sticking out the front of her skirt that got larger with every step she took towards him. Ranma may not have known much about how to interact with girls, but he had intimate knowledge about female biological functions...this was definitely not a functions associated with girls.

"A-Akane? Wha?"

Now standing toe to toe with Ranma, Akane finally made up her mind. With a wry grin and a lustful look in her eyes, she pounced.


	2. Chapter 2

Ranma's eyes fluttered open. What a night that was. He was grateful he managed to escape with his life. Looked like he was out for a while, though as it was the middle of the night. He felt sore all over. It was strange, though...it was the sharp, stinging pain usually associated with one of Akane's normal 'beat downs of irrationality'. It was more like the dull aches from a strenuous workout. Akane must be losing her edge. 

Ranma tried to sit up, but he felt a weight on his chest. Stupid old man...probably rolled over on him...probably sleeping in his stupid panda form too for extra crushing power. Ranma tried to take stock the best he could from his vantage point. With the moonlight softly bathing his room with illumination, he took a look around and immediately noticed something very disturbing...

It wasn't his room.

'What the...how did I end up here?' Ranma wondered inwardly.

He shook the cobwebs out of his head and tried to think back to the previous day. He remembered being in the bathroom...planning an escape? That was because Akane angrily roared his name, warning him of her approach. But she caught him before he could get away. She lunged at him...they went all over the bathroom, out into the living room (which was empty...the rest of their family managed to escape the carnage...lucky them) and up the stairs.

Ranma's mouth fell open as he remembered another important detail...they weren't exactly fighting...

His eyes darted around the room again. Judging by the horrible condition the place was in, their...encounter ended there...in Akane's room. Which meant the weight on his chest wasn't his father, but... "Akane!"

"Yes Ranma?"

"AH!" Crap, she was awake! He jumped and scooted away from her as far as he could. If only he could go through walls like in those super hero TV shows...he could disappear through the one at his back now. "L-look Akane...I-I can explain!"

Akane sat up. With the pale moonlight, Ranma could see her state of dress...she wasn't. "Oh really?" she dared.

Ranma blinked, thinking desperately for something to say. Unfortunately, his head was still too cloudy to think straight. His shoulders slumped as he admitted, "No, I guess I can't." With the way she normally reacted in those situations, Akane understood why he instinctively reacted that way. She disarmed him by taking his hand into hers and squeezing it lightly.

The sound of a cricket chirping filled the room as the couple sat, unable to articulate anything at the moment. They stared at their intertwined hands, too embarrassed to even look each other in the eye.

"Um," went Ranma, forcing himself to speak. "Did...er...did we...?"

"It seems like it," Akane answered.

"And...you…did you have a...I mean...er..."

She disengaged her hand from his and looked at herself. "I...I don't know what came over me. I just had this overwhelming need when I saw you. I-I couldn't control myself. And this...this THING!" She curled into a ball and began trembling violently, "W-what kind of freak have I become?"

Acting before his brain got in the way, Ranma reached out and held her close. "Don't worry, Akane. I don't know what's going on, but we'll get through this. I swear."

His words of reassurance seemed to have worked, as her trembling subsided. She unwrapped her arms from around herself and placed them around him in an almost crushing embrace. From the look in her eyes, though, Ranma could tell she was still a bit on the hysterical side. He tilted her head up so they were eye to eye. "Hey...have I ever let you down before?"

She smiled and shook her head. Ranma Saotome was many things; one being a man true to his word. If he said he was going to do something, she knew it was going to be done, no matter what. She never appreciated that quality in him as much as she did right there. She took at deep breath and tightened her grip around him. "Let's just stay like this for a while, hmm?"

"Err...sure..." Ranma laid back on the bed in a more comfortable position, with Akane's head nestled against his chest. It was then that he remembered to be embarrassed at his current situation.

Secretly, Ranma had always hoped they would get together like this as well. There were many nights where he dreamt of he and Akane resting arm in arm this way. He should've figured, though, that when they finally did break through their walls and accepted each other, it would've been as bizarre as the rest of their engagement. The fact remained, though...it has happened. The only question was, what would happen from there? Would things get better or worse? Whatever did happen, things were sure to never be the same.

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 2

The living room was a shambles. Paper and various other trash was strewn all over. The couch was overturned and the dining table was on its side. It was as if a typhoon had blown through. The rest of the Tendo family, along with family friend, Genma Saotome, had returned from their self-imposed exile to take stock of the damage that resulted from Akane's latest explosion of anger. Needless to say, it wasn't pretty.

Kasumi resumed her normal duties of cooking breakfast for everyone. Nabiki procured a broom and cleaned up the trash that was scattered everywhere. Soun and Genma fixed the furniture. "Wow...this one was really bad, wasn't it, Tendo?" observed Genma, lifting up one end of the dining table.

"The worst yet," agreed Soun, at the other end. "I don't know how much this poor house can take. When are our children going to learn to get along?"

"I wish I could say, my friend. They're very hardheaded, those two. I'm at a total loss as to what to do to push them closer together."

"You know," Nabiki interjected, "if they are as hardheaded as you say, maybe it's because you're pushing them to be together that they're pushing to be apart. Maybe if you let them be, they can work things out on their own?"

Placing the table back in it's proper place, the two fathers looked at Nabiki, taking in her speculation. Then they looked at each other. "...nah!" Nabiki threw up her hands and finished her sweeping.

"Father, is the table fixed yet?" called Kasumi from the kitchen.

"Yes, Kasumi! We just finished with it," said Soun.

"Good. Can you help me set the table?"

"Of course."

As Kasumi and Soun set the table, Genma set the sofa back in its place and Nabiki put away the broom, Ranma and Akane made their way downstairs. Everyone paused for a moment to stare at them.

Akane shrinked a bit at all of the attention they were getting. "Erm...good morning," she said, blushing fiercely, sitting in her place at the dining table.

Ranma was also taken aback by the stares they were getting. "Ah...yo..."

Genma rushed up to him and hit him with the Hell's Cradle attack (a giant bear hug). "Ranma, my boy! You're alive!"

"What're you talking about?" asked Ranma, straining under the pressure.

Genma released his son, "Are you kidding? You...you didn't take another shot to the head and get amnesia again, did you? With how big that last fight looked, I'm surprised you don't need to go to the hospital."

Looking at how big the mess in Akane's room was, it was easy to deduce that they were equally as messy every other place they ventured. "Oooh...right...the 'fight'. Feh. No sweat. She barely laid a hand on me."

"Not that I was using my hands much..." Akane interjected. The engaged couple looked at each other, turned deep red and turned away again.

Just then, Soun and Kasumi came in with the breakfast dishes and placed them on the table. "Okay, everyone. Let's sit and have a nice breakfast, okay?" Kasumi kindly ordered. Moving to comply, Ranma sat down next to Akane, but abruptly jumped back up again, wincing in pain. "Oh my! Ranma, are you okay?" Kasumi asked.

"Yeah, it's no big deal. I'm just a bit sore, is all." Gingerly, Ranma placed himself back on the seat, looking rather uncomfortable as he did so. Akane sank into her seat so much, she nearly slid under the table.

Kasumi raised an eyebrow. This was weird...even for them...

----+----

"Huh...how does she talk me into these things?" Nabiki thought out loud, as she tailed her younger sister and her intended. If anyone knew how to surveill someone, it was she. After all, when the rest of the family wanted to spy on Ranma and Akane, they went to her for equipment and good hiding places. But this was more effort than she wanted to go through. She thought back to the short conversation she had with Kasumi just before she left the house.

"Nabiki, a word before you go..." beckoned Kasumi.

"Sure, sis. What is it?"

"I would like for you to keep an eye on Ranma and Akane for me, okay?"

Nabiki tilted her head to the side, "This is new. I would expect this from dad, or Mr. Saotome. Why would you want me to?"

Kasumi paused for a moment, with her head down. "I...I think Ranma and Akane indeed went after each other last night...but I DON'T think it was a fight..."

"If not a fight then what?" Kasumi blushed and turned away slightly. Nabiki's eyes lit up, "You mean? They actually did it?"

"I believe so."

Nabiki threw her head back, laughing. "Well, it's about time! Pretty smart of them too, pretending to fight to make sure we leave them alone. I had no idea they were so devious. I'm impressed."

"You shouldn't be. Such a thing isn't proper until they're married."

"I've said before that you shouldn't be so old fashioned, Kasumi. Besides, they're practically married already. And with the way they've been carrying on and now with THIS, they've definitely been acting married for a long time. What's the big deal?"

"It's wrong!" Nabiki shook her head. Kasumi looked back in the house to make sure no one heard their conversation. Once she was sure, she added, "And, I think something else happened. Something besides them...consummating their marriage too early."

"Like what?"

"I can't say...and I certainly hope it's not what I think it is."

Nabiki's cheerful expression fell. "No...you think it happened, don't you?"

"It's just a feeling right now...that's why I want you to keep an eye on them for me. Okay?"

Which is where she was now. Nabiki sighed. Even she was unable to say no to her sister when she asked a favor. She turned a corner and found Ranma and Akane further down the block, so she ducked back and hid behind the corner. It looked to her like they were doing what they did best...argue. She listened intently, hoping to hear a little of what they were saying.

"Don't you remember what we discussed yesterday? What happened to not skipping school?" argued Akane.

"This is more important," Ranma said, sternly. "I told ya that I was gonna help you through this, right?"

"Well, yeah, but how is skipping school going to help anything?"

"We need to find the old freak."

"Grandfather Happousai? What for?"

"Think about it...when was the first time you noticed you had...it?"

"I know...yesterday after the fight between Happousai and Taro. You think I was cursed when that water splashed on me."

"Partially, anyway."

"Even still, how is finding Happousai going to help?"

"He seems to know how to find specific springs. We can force him to get water from the spring of drowned girl to cure you."

Akane nodded. "It sounds like a good idea. But how in the world are we going to find him?"

Ranma smirked. "I got an idea about that. If he's anywhere in town, there's no way he'll be able to resist."

It wasn't sounding good. However, just from what she heard, she couldn't be conclusive. She'd have to stay on them until she was 100 sure about Kasumi's suspicions. When Ranma and Akane finally moved, Nabiki stayed on their tail, careful to keep out of sight. Looks like she was getting a little vacation from school as well.

----+----

Somewhere in the town of Nerima, Happousai bounded from rooftop to rooftop, giggling like a school child. It was true that Ranma had foiled yet another of his plots: Taro was out there somewhere, with his powerful cursed form, plotting another attack against him...probably close by to, as he didn't know where Taro flew off to after the explosion.

The bright side of it was, Happousai did end up in a bathhouse on the women's side. A few gropes and some stolen panties later, all was forgotten. The only thing on his mind now, was getting back to his student's house to take inventory of all the goodies he collected.

He was only a few blocks away from Soun's house when he stopped suddenly. "My hentai senses are tingling..." Happousai scanned the skyline, finally focusing his attention eastward. "There we are..."

With a devilish grin, he launched himself into the air, coming down on a rather upscale apartment complex. On the roof of the apartment was a blond woman lying on her stomach, sunbathing. She wore a solid red, two-piece swimsuit with the top undone. "SWEETO!" Once again, he hit the jackpot. His shout alerted the woman to his presence, but she wouldn't be able to react in time to stop his special attack: The Founding School of Anything Goes Martial Arts: Kanchou-Ken. Translated loosely to "Butt-Grabbing Fist" (More accurately, "Butt-Poking Fist", but he prefers to grab). Target in range, and...

WHAM!

Happousai fell harmlessly to the floor, his head colliding with the business end of Akane Tendo's Megaton Mallet of Justice. His intended target sat up and pulled her blond hair off, revealing her real, fiery red hair and familiar pigtail.

"Heh, I told you this would work Akane," the female Ranma said. "Now, let's get him tied up so he can't get away."

----+----

It took a while for her to catch up, but Nabiki finally caught sight of her sister and soon-to-be brother-in-law. Happousai was there with them as well, bound and tied to a deckchair. That was very quick for them to have found him. Happousai was never one to be found when anyone was actively looking for him. Once again, she paid close attention to what was going on from behind a structure's corner.

"Ugh...what in the world did you do that for?" inquired Happousai, groggily.

"Feh," spat Ranma. "You're gonna get a lot worse if you don't clean up the mess you made."

"What are you talking about?"

"THIS!" Angrily, Ranma lifted up Akane's school uniform skirt to show off her...new accessory. To which, Akane forced her skirt back down and slapped Ranma in the face for his trouble. "...was that really necessary?"

"That's what I was going to say!" shouted Akane.

Nabiki ducked completely behind the structure and held her hands over her mouth, shocked. "Oh man...Kasumi's intuition was right. It's happened! I'd better get back and tell her..."

As Nabiki made her clandestine exit, the other three continued their confrontation. Somehow, as he always did, Happousai escaped his binding, and attached himself to Akane's chest, wailing loudly. "Oh, Akane! My poor, sweet Akane! What has happened to you?"

Akane clocked the old pervert on the head, detaching him from her bosom, "You should know! You were the one who did this to me!"

"And you're going to set things right, or else!" added Ranma.

"I still don't know what you're talking about," said Happousai. "How in the world could I have done that?"

"That fight you had with Taro yesterday," Ranma said. "You remember...you had water from the spring of drowned man. You dropped it in the fight and some of it splashed on Akane. It was right after that...that came up."

Happousai laughed at him. "Good grief, boy. You're cursed yourself, yet you have no idea how the cursed springs of Jusenkyou work."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The diminutive martial arts master crossed his arms, in an attempt to look wise. "It means the springs don't work that way. Don't you remember? Taro got his curse because I bathed him in the cursed water. Of course, during the course of that, I got some of the water on me as well. But you don't see any transformation when I get hit with cold water, do you?"

Ranma and Akane looked at each other, pensively. "W-what are you trying to say?" Akane asked.

"I'm saying that you can't get partial curses. Your body has to be completely drenched before the magic of the springs can take effect. That's part of Jusenkyou's nature. I don't know what caused this change in Akane, but it wasn't the water I had yesterday."

Akane collapsed to her knees, a deep look of dread befalling her. Seeing the confidence in his fiancée waning, Ranma desperately tried to come up with another idea. "Well...so what if it's not a curse?" He turned back to his father's master, "You can still get water from the spring of drowned girl, right? Two dunks in it should turn Akane back to the way she was before!"

Happousai shook his head. "That won't work either, boy."

"How do you know?" Ranma argued. "We gotta try!"

The old man sighed. He actually felt sorry for the couple. "It's also part of Jusenkyou's nature. Hence, why they're referred to as cursed springs. They have a will of their own that they magically impose on all who have visited there. And they always have a way of working against your wishes. Let's take you for example...do you like your curse, Ranma?"

"Of course I don't!"

"And you want to get rid of it, right?"

"Damn right, I do!"

"You were at Jusenkyou already when you were cursed, where you could've had the guide show you the location of the spring of drowned man. You could've jumped in right then and never have had to worry about it for as long as you have. So tell me...why did you leave not doing so?"

Ranma paused, coming to a stunning realization. "I...I dunno. I-it just felt like the thing to do at the time.

"It was Jusenkyou at work. Tell me something else...why do you think you got the curse to turn into a girl?"

"I...I dunno..." went Ranma, still stunned.

"Heh...I know all about your promise, boy. You and your father promised your mother that you would grow into a man among men. It is your wish to be the man among men you promised to be. THAT'S why you got the curse to turn into a girl. It's the very antithesis of what you wanted."

Every bit of information was a severe blow to Ranma. As much as he hated to admit it, it all made sense. He wanted to be the best man he could be and the spring turned him into a girl. His father was one of the biggest loudmouths he knew, yet the spring turned him into a creature that couldn't speak. Ryouga hated pigs, and thanks to the spring, he became one. Shampoo wanted very badly to be married to Ranma, but Ranma was scared to death of cats...which became Shampoo's curse. But...

"Wait a minute..." Ranma interrupted. "If all of that's true, then how do you explain Taro? He's the biggest, power hungry jerk I know. Yet he got a very powerful cursed form. How do you explain that?"

"Jusenkyou's nature, again," Happousai started. "You see, it has a lot of springs that can grant whomever falls in tremendously powerful cursed forms."

"Like Asuraniichuan," went Ranma, with the woman, Rogue coming to mind.

"I'm talking forms with power so great, Asura pales in comparison. Wizards, dragons, gods, demons, creatures you couldn't even begin to imagine. And all of that power is there for anyone to take, save for Jusenkyou's will. Like I said, it acts against the wants of those who wander into the valley. So if someone wanted to get one of the dragon springs, they'd get the spring of drowned rat or something equally as ridiculous instead. Those who go in looking for power leave weaker. Meanwhile, the innocent...those who are pure of heart and want for nothing get the more powerful cursed forms. And no one can match the innocence of a baby, which Taro was when he was cursed."

Damn...the old man was making way too much sense.

"Going back to you, Ranma," Happousai continued, "it would be pointless to go back to Jusenkyou to look for a cure. It will do everything it can to make sure you don't get cured. Even if, by chance, you do find the spring of drowned man, you may not become cured. Your cursed form may become androgynous like Akane. And as far as Akane goes...there's no telling what would happen to her if you took her there. She may face a far worse fate than she does now. It would be best if you didn't chance it."

Ranma cursed to himself, "...no...that can't be it. There has to be a way to fix things!"

"Ranma...enough."

He looked over to his fiancée, who barely managed the whisper. "But Akane! We can't just give up like this! There IS a way...I know there is!"

"No," she croaked. "We just have to face the facts...we aren't going to win this one." She staggered to her feet and started back to the stairway, leading into the apartment building. "Let's go home...I suddenly feel like skipping school today myself."

----+----

It was a perfectly dreadful day. The stupid sun shone in the sky, with not a single cloud to mar the scenery. The birds were flying, singing their damned happy songs as they did so. People were out and about living their lives as if there weren't a problem in the world. . It was a day for a romantic stroll, if one were so inclined. Of course, those inclined to do so that day would've been told promptly to go to hell.

All Akane wanted to do was get home, go into her room and lock the rest of the world out forever. Her eyes were vacant; having lost all the fire and energy they held within them. Her once powerful legs were now too weak to even pick her feet up off the ground. Her indomitable will had been completely drained. Never before had she experienced such a crushing defeat of the spirit. The trip from that apartment building back home felt as though it were a thousand miles long, but finally they reached their destination. Akane was mere feet away from her sanctuary from the rest of civilization.

She couldn't even make it that far. She only took two steps onto the Tendo property before she broke down, sobbing uncontrollably. Every by her side, Ranma took a hold of her and held her to him. With what appeared to be a repulsed look on her face, Akane pushed him away from her, "Don't touch me!" "Akane!"

"STAY AWAY FROM ME! I-I'm a FREAK! Some sort of disgusting mutation! I...I..."

Ranma grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look at him. She was hysterical again and this time it looked as if no words would reach her. So Ranma did something to her that he had never done before...something he swore he would never do to any girl under any circumstances...

He slapped her.

Akane stopped crying and held her cheek, stunned. "Stop Akane, RIGHT THERE! I'm not going to sit here and let you do this to yourself! You're the toughest girl I know. You've been through all kinds of crap since I've been here, and you always came out stronger. Why in the world are you gonna let this beat you?"

"...Ranma..."

He caught himself...seemed like he was getting a bit hysterical too. "Look...maybe there isn't a way to change you back to the way you were before, but there's no need to roll over and quit like this. You gotta learn to adapt. Take what was a weakness and use it to your advantage. But above all else, you gotta keep going. No matter what."

Akane stared at her fiancée, dumbfounded. Ranma Saotome, the man who perpetually suffered from foot in mouth disease, had just given her the most heartfelt praise and confidence booster she had ever received. She had no idea he though of her that way. Her lips curled up into a smile and she leaned her head against him. Instinctively, Ranma wrapped his arms around her. "Erm..." went Ranma, "Sorry about hittin' ya like that."

Akane laughed, "Don't be. It did what it was supposed to do." She tilted her head up and looked at him, "What in the world would I do without you?"

Ranma shrugged. "I dunno. Probably a lot better than you're doing now. Course I don't intend to let you find out." He tightened his grip on her, "I'm always gonna be right here, by your side. Always."

She wiped the last few tears from her eyes. "At times, I question why I feel for you the way I do...then you go and do something like this." Her smile widened and she added, "I love you, Ranma Saotome."

Ranma got his usual cocky grin back, "Well, of course. I mean, what's not to love?"

Akane gave him a thwap on the shoulder. "You jerk," she laughed.

"And I love you too, Akane Tendo."

For a moment, their eyes locked. Never had they been this close to each other on so many levels, not even the night before. The final connection between them had been made and it was high time they solidified that connection properly. As their faces inched closer together, their hearts began to race, the anticipation boiling over within. They've waited so long for this moment...

"Ahem."

Crap, busted. In the doorway of the house, Akane's father and sisters stood, looking intently at them. Just as with every other moment Ranma and Akane tried to share, they had to be close by spying. They had to ruin everything. The couple stood up, with Ranma in front of Akane, ready to defend her if they decided to attack with wedding paraphernalia. "What do you want?" he challenged.

Kasumi stepped forward, looking more serious than she ever had before. Taking both of their hands, she said the most dreaded words anyone could ever hear in any language.

"We need to talk..."

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----


	3. Chapter 3

How long had it been since he fought someone other than Ranma? 

Mousse had no idea. To be honest, the prospect of facing a new enemy was exciting and a little unnerving. Whenever he fought against Ranma, he had expectations as to what would happen since they had come to know each other so well. In this upcoming fight, where there were expectations, there's now uncertainty. Mousse had no idea who this woman was, nor what her motivations were.

She couldn't have been an Amazon. He knew everyone his age that trained under his fighting style. But the only way she could know that particular art of fighting was if she were an Amazon. Then again, Elder Cologne had been known to teach outsiders Amazon fighting techniques, so such a thing was not unheard of. Still, one or two moves are one thing...but a whole style of fighting?

He sat on a mat in the back yard of the Nekohaten mentally preparing for his upcoming battle. He wasn't able to make much sense out things, though, regarding his opponent. Regardless of whether she was an Amazon or not, what reason could she have had to challenge him to a duel? As far as he knew, they never met before, so it couldn't have been any sort of grievance she had against him.

Who would've guessed I'd run into someone here who also uses hidden weapon techniques.

She spoke as if she didn't sound as if she were seeking him, in particular, out. Just that she was shocked to see someone using a similar style. Could it be that the duel was nothing more than a test of his skills? If that were the case, it would be a load off. A fight to set you skill against the skill of your opponent just to see who's is better. Mousse hasn't been involved in anything like that since he moved from China. But this was where the uncertainty played games with his mind. He couldn't assume anything, so he had to be prepared for anything.

"Here you are boy," came a wizened voice behind him. He turned to find Cologne returning his gaze. "What are you doing out here? There are customers that need serving."

"I can't help you right now," Mousse said. "I must prepare for my duel."

"Duel?" she repeated. "So, you're going after son-in-law again?"

"No. It's someone I've never met before. And she challenged me."

Cologne raised her brow. Another newcomer, hmm? They always bring a level of excitement to the area, forcing the kids there to sharpen their skills. They've all been getting rather lax lately and it would do the boy some good. "Well, in that case then, I won't disturb you. Continue your preparation."

"I'm afraid the time for preparation is over." Mousse and Cologne looked to find the blond martial artist standing, perfectly balanced, on the fence that partitioned off their property. "The time has come for you to answer my challenge. Are you ready?"

Mousse stood to his feet and answered, "Yes, I am."

She smiled at him, "Good. I'll show you the way to our battlefield. Follow me." With that, she leapt out towards the center of the neighborhood, with Mousse following close behind.

Cologne narrowed her eyes. "That couldn't have been...could it?"

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 3

Ranma and Akane sat pensively in the living room. The rest of their family was there as well, with very stern looks on their faces. This certainly wasn't the way the couple expected them to react, after catching them admitting that they loved each other. Something was up and they weren't sure they were going to like it.

Kasumi took a deep breath and started things off, "Akane. It has been brought to my attention that you have gone through some...changes."

Akane jumped out of her seat, blushing furiously, "Wha-How did you know?" She turned to Ranma, with an accusatory look in her eyes.

"Hey! Don't look at me!" said Ranma, defensively. "I've been with you since yesterday, remember?"

"Actually," Nabiki piped in, raising her hand, "it was me. I was eavesdropping on you when you caught Happousai earlier." Akane sat back down in her seat, looking as though she was going to die of embarrassment.

Kasumi took another deep breath, and continued, "There's nothing to be embarrassed about, Akane. After all, it's...hereditary."

Akane's jaw dropped. "Y-you mean you...?" She looked back and forth between Kasumi and Nabiki, who were both nodding. "But...but how?"

Kasumi favored her youngest sister with a sad smile. "I'm afraid we've been keeping some very important information about our heritage a secret. You see...our mother was a demon. Which makes us half-demons." Akane was astonished, unable to say a word. She looked to her father for an explanation, or to, at least, hear that the whole thing was a really bad joke...she hoped it was a bad joke.

"It's true," Soun said, with a far away look in his eyes. "It all started many years ago..."

--Flashback--

A young Soun Tendo and Genma Saotome huddled next to a campfire, trying desperately to stay warm out in the bitterly cold night. It hadn't been long since they hiked up to this area under the direction of their devious master, Happousai, but it felt like forever. What was worse was the fact that they weren't that far from a mountain village which could've provided them with the comfort of hot food and a warm bed, but Happousai ordered they not enter.

"Tell me again why we're doing this again?" asked Soun, managing to get the words through his chattering teeth.

"To become the world's greatest, most revered martial artists," Genma answered. "You've seen for yourself how powerful the Anything Goes style is. Once we master its techniques, we'd be unstoppable!"

"You do realize that our 'master' hasn't done anything to teach us about the art. We learned the basics for ourselves."

"Give the master some credit. All of our 'exercises' so far have made us stronger and faster than we've ever been before."

"You're right," Soun conceded. "That's because we had to get stronger to carry all of the stuff the master stole from all of the towns and villages we've visited until now. And we had to become faster to outrun all of the large mobs whom he stole from."

"The methods may be questionable, but you can't argue with the results." Soun shook his head. He couldn't believe his friend was still defending Happousai, even after all the abuse he heaped upon them. He had been saying that they needed to get away from him, but Genma had always talked him out of it. Soun sighed, resigning himself to the fact that they were going to be under the thumb of this tyrant for a long time.

Speaking of which, the mini-tyrant bounded out of the woods and came to rest between them. As always, he had two rather large sacks in tow, filled with ill-gotten goods. "Hiya, boys! How's the wilderness survival training going?"

"Oh, is that what it's called?" Happousai glared at Soun and the taller man backpedaled, "Erm, it's going fine, master. Just fine."

"Good, good. Just what I wanted to hear!" said Happousai, returning to his good cheer. "Lookie here, boys! It was quite a good haul tonight!" The diminutive master opened his sacks, showing off all of his stolen goods. Most were, of course, women's underclothes. There were also some valuable looking antiques thrown in, along with some food items.

Soun and Genma eyed the food hungrily. "Erm...master...may we?" begged Genma.

"The point of wilderness survival training was for you to capture your own food!" Happousai scolded. The two men didn't flinch, however. They continued staring at the food, drooling. "Bleh...okay. You can have the food. Just don't slobber on me."

The men grabbed the various items of food and gobbled them down as if they hadn't eaten anything in the last week...because they hadn't. With their bellies satisfied, they kicked back and winded down, getting ready to go to sleep. Genma stoked the fire, making sure it would stay burning for a few more hours, while Soun studied the antique pieces that Happousai...acquired.

"These pieces are incredible," he commented.

"You bet," Happousai boasted. "I'll bet they'll fetch a good amount of yen too."

"Where did you get them from?"

"A castle just beyond that village."

Genma looked up, "A castle? Oh! You mean the castle where that light is coming from?"

"Light?" Happousai looked up as well. Just beyond the village, resided an ancient castle that looked as though it belonged in the feudal period. Just above the castle in question, a small point of light propelled itself into the night sky. It would've gotten lost among the brightly shining stars had it not began growing in size. "Er, you know boys, I don't think this is the ideal camping spot. Let's get packed up and get out of here."

Soun looked at him, "Master?" "DON'T JUST SIT THERE! I SAID WE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE!" Happousai repacked all of his goodies, and slung the sacks on his students' backs. He, then, hopped on Soun's sack and commenced the Founding School of Anything Goes Martial Arts Speed Training. In other words, the running as fast as you can away from the angry mob who just had their stuff stolen. Only this time, there didn't appear to be an angry mob.

Happousai looked back into the sky to see if that point of light had been following them. Apparently, it wasn't. Probably stopped off at their old campsite. He wiped his brow, "Whew...we got away."

Suddenly, the path in front of them exploded, blowing all three backwards at least ten feet. When the smoke cleared, a beautiful woman appeared, floating just above the large crater she made. She wore an ornate, floral patterned kimono and sported short brown hair and deep, enchanting brown eyes. She also had a bright, angry glow about her.

"So," she started in a transfixing, soul piercing voice, "you are the ones who stole from me."

Happousai looked at her with big, puppy dog eyes, "Please, spare me, pretty lady! I'm just an innocent old man! It was these ruffians who robbed you!"

Soun and Genma glared at him, "MASTER!"

"It matters not. As far as I'm concerned, you're all guilty." She raised her right hand and the energy that glowed around her body focused itself into a ball that rested there. "You will all pay."

"Sorry, toots, but Master Happousai of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts never pays for anything! HAPPOU FIRE BURST!" His coconut-like bombs exploded at her feet, where he threw them, causing the demon to avert her eyes. By the time she was able to see, the demon's prey were all nowhere to be found.

"Feh, this isn't over," she declared. "I WILL find you."

Only a few yards away, Happousai watched as the beautiful demon bathed herself in light and flew away. Once she was gone, he turned to look at his sacks full of goodies. "Heh! What a haul!"

Soun and Genma, meanwhile, were panting heavily, ecstatic to be alive. "I can't believe that the master would have the audacity to steal from a demon!" Genma whispered to his friend through gasps. "You're right, Tendo. We can't stay with him any longer." Soun gave him a pat on the shoulder. But they couldn't just escape. Sooner or later, he would find them. And he would, likely, bring misery to all he happened upon while he searched for them. No, more drastic measures would need to be taken. Thus began their plan to do away with their master.

----+----+----+----+----

One year had gone by since Soun and Genma had hatched their plan to get rid of their master Happousai. Six months had gone by since they carried out their plan. It appeared to have been a rousing success. Happousai had been known for his harrowing escapes from harm, but in his drunken state, there was no way he would've been able to escape that locked cave before the dynamite went off.

Since that time, Soun and Genma started learning the finer workings of the Anything Goes style from books and scrolls written or co-written by Happousai. With those techniques, it wouldn't take long for them to realize their dreams of becoming the world's strongest martial artists. There were some skills, however, that looked far too dangerous to learn. They decided it was best to lock those skills away to make sure neither they nor anyone else could learn them. Unbeknownst to Soun at the time, Genma secretly stashed away the instructions for the Yamesenken, Umesenken and Nekoken for later use.

Tired, sore but happy, the friends sat in a pub located in a quiet village enjoying a couple of beers. Without a care for the world the two spoke about their plans for the future, initially, paying no mind to the extraordinarily lovely woman that just walked in.

"Hey, Saotome...what do you think about settling down? Getting married and starting a family?" asked Soun.

"Us? Families?" Genma thought for a moment. "I don't know if men like us are suited for families to tell the truth."

"Still, what do you think about it?"

Genma thought some more. "Well, sure. I've thought about it. I do think it would be nice, having a wife to share my life with...and a son to pass on what I've learned." He smiled at the cozy thought. "Heh. I wonder if Nodoka would ever consider such a thing with a guy like me?"

"Nodoka?" Soun wondered. "Who's that?"

"My girlfriend," beamed Genma.

Soun looked at him. "I thought Atsuko was your girlfriend?"

"Err...+cough+ that's enough about me! Heheheh" went Genma, finding his seat rather hot all of a sudden. "How about you, Tendo?"

"It's been a dream of mine for quite some time, having a wife and children...maybe a boy and a girl! I could have a dojo right there at our house so I could work, teaching others. That way, I would never be far away from them."

Genma gave him a pat on the back, "It's a good dream, my friend."

"Heh, and that's all it is. Who am I kidding? I'm not going to get married. I don't even have ONE girlfriend right now." Genma coughed again.

"Well, we could change that right now," Genma suggested. He looked around the pub until he spotted that extraordinarily lovely woman. "How about her?"

Soun looked over at the woman Genma pointed out, and then turned back to his friend, "I couldn't, Saotome! She's far too elegant and refined to have the time of day for me."

"Nonsense. You're just scared."

Soun crossed his arms. "Not at all." His bravado didn't stop his knees from shaking, though.

"C'mon, Tendo. We braved training from our evil master! If we could do that, talking to a woman should be nothing to worry about. Just walk up to her, ask if you could join her and strike up a conversation. Just get her with that Soun Tendo charm, and she'll be all yours."

"If you say so." Steeling himself and taking one last gulp of beer for luck, Soun stood up and walked, rather stiffly, to the lady. "Erm...excuse me. Would you mind if I joined you?"

The lady looked at him for a moment, checking him out. She raised her eyebrow for some reason and answered, "Why no. I would enjoy the company."

Whew. That's one hurdle he managed to get over. "Thank you. I saw you from across the room and I just had to meet you."

She gave him a smile, "Really? Looked to me like your friend nearly had to kick you out of your seat to get you over here."

Soun laughed nervously, "I guess that's true. I just thought you wouldn't give a guy like me the time of day."

"Normally, I wouldn't. But I just found something about you intriguing." He blushed and laughed nervously again. "You sound nervous. Don't worry. I don't bite." She raised her eyebrow again, "Not on the first date, anyway."

"Ahem Er...would you like a drink?"

"Sure. I was going to get their red lager."

"Beer?"

"Surprised?"

Soun rubbed the back of his head. "You just struck me as one of those high class types who would drink something fancier."

"Sometimes fancy gets boring," she said with a smile. Soun beckoned the waiter over and ordered two of their red lager beers. As he did so, the lady studied his features very closely. Once again, she raised her eyebrow. Once the waiter left, she said, "You know, we've spent all this time talking, and we haven't even introduced ourselves yet."

"Oh! I'm sorry. I don't know what happened to my manners tonight. My name is Soun."

"Nice to meet you Soun. My name is Moriko."

This time, he favored her with a smile, "Moriko...such a lovely name."

"Thank you. You know...I have a feeling that we met before."

Soun thought for a moment, trying to remember her face. "Hmm. No. I think I would remember someone like you."

"It took me a while," she said. "But I remember now. Though, I don't blame you if you forgot. After all, it was a year ago and it was dark out at the time. Here, I think this will refresh your memory." Scooting herself away from their table, Moriko stood to her feet and closed her eyes. Out of nowhere, a breeze picked up, whipping Soun's hair slightly. Gradually, Moriko's body began glowing. Soun's eyes bugged out so much; they nearly fell out of their sockets. "Finally," she said, with a slight echo to her voice, "we meet again."

It was at that moment when the waiter came back with their drinks, "Here you go."

Mariko's eyes lit up, like the rest of her. "Ah! Beer!" She took one of the mugs, put it to her head and chugged down as if it was water. Once the mug was empty, she placed it back on the table and daintily wiped her mouth with a napkin. "This proves that higher society doesn't have all the finer things in life. Now, for you-" She turned her attention back to Soun, only to find that he wasn't there anymore. She looked back to where he was seated originally and found that Genma was gone too. "You won't escape me this time!" She levitated a few inches off of the floor and began flying towards the exit. Before going through the door, she went back to her table and grabbed the other full mug. "Can't let this go to waste."

----+----

Outside the village, Soun and Genma ran. Once again, the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts Speed Training came in handy. Be that as it may, even with him gone now, it seemed they couldn't escape the mess Happousai created. Still, Soun had to give Genma a good whack on the head. "Of all the girls in that pub, you had to pick the one who was a demon and wanted to kill us!"

"How was I supposed to know?" countered Genma. "I couldn't recognize her either without her glowing and everything!"

Soun shook his head. "Still, it was a good thing she liked the drinks there, or else, we wouldn't have made it out of there."

Just like last time, before they could get too far away from the village, the path in front of them exploded, knocking them back. Once the smoke cleared, Moriko was there, floating just above the crater she made. "We really need to stop meeting like this."

Genma jumped to his feet and adopted a defensive posture. Soun stood up and looked at him, "What do you think you're doing, Saotome?"

"What does it look like?" he asked. "We can't get away. Our only option now is to fight."

"We can't win this, Saotome. You know that. We don't know any of the more advanced skills in the art."

"In case you haven't noticed, we don't have any choice."

"Yes. We do." He turned, walking towards Moriko, stopping at the edge of the crater. "Surrender."

"WHAT?" went Genma and Moriko.

Genma went up to his friend and grabbed his shoulders. "I can't believe you just want us to surrender to her like that!"

"Not 'us'," Soun said, resolved. He addressed Moriko. "I know what our master did to you was wrong. We saw to it ourselves that he paid for all the wrong he's done."

"It doesn't matter," returned Moriko. "As I said before, I blame all of you for the theft of my belongings. I intend to make sure you all pay."

"I know. That's why I'm begging you for mercy."

Moriko raised her eyebrow, "Mercy?"

"Yes. Please allow my friend to return home. You can exact all of your vengeance on me."

"WHAT?" repeated Genma. "Tendo no! Don't do this!"

Soun looked at his friend, "She won't stop until we're all dead, otherwise. Saotome, my friend, you have someone waiting for you back home. You have a family to begin. I can't allow anything to happen to you. If doing this will ensure your future, then this is what I'll do."

Moriko floated in front of Soun and landed. "You would sacrifice yourself for your friend?"

Soun nodded, "I would."

She took a step back, brought her hand level with Soun's heart and focused her energies into a ball, intending to obliterate the man where he stood. Soun, for his part, kept his gaze fixed upon her, steady and unflinching. He stared death in the face with courage and conviction...far different than the man who, not long ago, was trembling merely speaking to her. Very intriguing, indeed.

Softening her gaze, Moriko closed her fist, dissipating the energy and lowered her hand. She couldn't bring herself to simply kill such a curiosity. Tilting her head to the side, she suggested, "I'll make you a deal. I will allow your friend to go on his way. And, instead of killing you, you will become my servant for one year. What do you say?"

Soun didn't have to ponder the suggestion long, "Okay, I'll do it. Just let me have a moment to say goodbye to my friend."

Moriko nodded, "Just a moment."

Soun turned back to Genma and his friend gave him a hug. "Tendo! Why? Why are you doing this?" Genma asked.

"I've already given my reasons, Saotome. She's already been more merciful than I thought. We shouldn't try to push our luck. So promise that you won't try to rescue me or anything, okay? Promise me that you will start your family and live well."

Tears began to stream down Genma's face. Reluctantly, he nodded in agreement. "I don't know how I can ever repay you for this! Ah! I know. You have my pledge that when your dreams come true and you have a family and dojo of your own, I shall give a child of mine to you, to marry a child of yours. I swear this upon my honor as a man and as your friend."

"S-Saotome..." stuttered Soun, getting misty himself.

"It's time," commanded Moriko. She walked over to Soun and put her hand on her shoulder. Both were enveloped in a bright light and disappeared, leaving Genma alone.

He looked up at the night sky, "Be well, my friend. I won't forget this."

--End Flashback--

"And that's how your mother and I met," Soun related. Ranma and Akane sat staring in awe at his story. "The year came and went with her giving me a lot of grueling tasks. Heh, there were times when she was so harsh I wished she HAD killed me that night. But somewhere along the line, we grew to love each other. When that year was finished and I was free to leave, I couldn't bring myself to. Nor did she relish the thought of having to go on without me. From that point on, we were inseparable.

"Not long after, we were married and Kasumi was born. Even though Kasumi was a half demon, she didn't show any signs of it. As far as we cold tell, she was a normal little girl. We moved here to Nerima to start the dojo while she was pregnant with Nabiki. Akane came into our household soon after. By all appearances, we were your typical family. However, when Kasumi turned seven years old, she began her change. She gained some amazing new abilities, but she didn't know what to make of it all. Fortunately, Moriko was able to train her properly so she wouldn't be a danger to herself or anyone else. It was the same for Nabiki. But when it was nearly time for Akane…Moriko died..." Soun trailed off, getting choked up.

"I'm wonderin'," began Ranma, "how exactly did she die? I mean it wasn't as if she could get sick or anything."

Soun put his face in his hands, unable to answer. Kasumi gave his back a comforting rub and decided to answer for him, "She...she was killed."

Akane jumped out of her seat. She couldn't believe how much her family had kept from her, "KILLED? HOW? BY WHOM?"

"It was a rival of hers," Kasumi continued. "A demon named Arame. In a battle that took place just before mother was pregnant with Nabiki, she had tried to kill father. Mother saved his life by taking the blow for him. The attack was very insidious, however. It was as if it were eating her alive."

"With the help of some friends we had nearby," said Soun, who composed himself enough to pick up the story, "we sealed Arame in an ancient tree that had mysterious, mystical powers. With her gone, we thought everything was going to be okay after that. Moriko never let on exactly how badly hurt she was. I should have noticed it, though, since she used less and less of her power afterwards. It took a great deal of her strength to stave off the effects of Arame's attack. But every time she gave birth after that, she grew weaker and the aftereffects ravaged her body. After she had you, Akane, she couldn't fight the effects anymore. They finally killed her when you were six years old."

Akane collapsed back into her seat, dumbfounded. "I...I can't believe this. W-why haven't any of you told me this before?"

"We didn't think we should've burdened you with the truth," answered Kasumi. "As we said, my change and Nabiki's change happened when we were seven years old. Nabiki's change was less profound as my own. We think it was because mother was weaker when she gave birth to her. When mother died, we were worried since we would have to be the ones to train you after your transformation took place. But a year later, when the change was suppose to happen, it didn't."

"Mom was very weak when she gave birth to you, Akane," added Nabiki. "We thought it was possible that the change would take place later for you. But then the years passed and you never went through the change. Since it appeared you were, for all intents and purposes, fully human, and you went through your whole life believing you were fully human, we thought it better that you never knew otherwise."

The whole thing made Akane sick to her stomach. "I-I need to be alone!" With that, she jumped back to her feet and ran up to her room.

With his youngest daughter out of the room, Soun turned his attention to Ranma. "Son, you aren't going to let the truth about her heritage change things between you and Akane, are you?"

"Yeah, I mean think of things the way we think about it," said Nabiki. "As far as we're concerned, we're 100 percent human. All the extra stuff we come with is just that...extra."

Ranma crossed his arms, deep in thought. "I don't understand...if her change didn't take place when it was supposed to, what could've triggered it now?"

"I'm not sure, myself," admitted Kasumi. "Maybe something deep within her was triggered because of some external stimulus...extreme fear or something. But I've never known Akane to ever be that scared of anything."

Ranma thought back to the previous day, 'I have...'

The eldest Tendo daughter walked over to Ranma and put her arm around him. "This is going to be a very trying time for Akane. I will do my best to train her, as mother trained me. But YOU are the one she's going to need, now more than ever. You will be there for her when she needs you, won't you?"

He didn't give it a second thought. "Of course I will."

Kasumi smiled at him, "Thank you."

----+----+----+----+----

The day was growing late. The clear, blue skies had streaks of bright orange running through them as the sun slowly sank in the western horizon. The coming night, however, wasn't promising to be a very quiet one. Clangs of metal on metal emerged from Nerima's central park as two weary warriors battled ferociously.

The duel had gone on for many hours, with the two combatants, so far, fighting to a draw. Mousse had to give the newcomer credit. She was very good. He wielded a dragon spear designed to resemble the famous Blue Dragon wielded by the Chinese legend, Guan Yu. He held the advantage in reach, as she wielded a scimitar, however, he was unable to break through her defenses.

The confusion Mousse had to the girls origins had only deepened as the battle wore on. Even though she clearly used the Hidden Weapons techniques to battle, her fighting style was remarkably different than the one his master taught. It was clear that she wasn't an Amazon from his tribe, but he didn't know of anyone else in the world that taught the Hidden Weapons technique.

Dwelling on her origins would only serve to do him in, as it distracted him from the task at hand. She grabbed a few of those daggers from her sleeves and hurled them at him. Mouse aptly blocked every one with his spear. The daggers were merely a diversion, as she moved to slice through his midsection with her scimitar. He managed to block her attack as well with the spear, but its handle was cut in two. The girl continued through with her swing, making another attempt at his midsection. Mousse, however, jumped safely out of its path.

She pressed her advantage, ensuring he wouldn't get a reprieve or another weapon with which to defend himself. Mousse managed to expertly dodge every one of her swings. But she was pushing him back effectively. Soon, he'd have his back to the brick fence that surrounded the park. There was only one attack he could think of that he could pull off that would be quick and disorienting enough to get him out of his jam.

He put his arms to his chest, and then shot them back outward, slinging at least twenty chains out of his sleeves. None of the chain's daggered edges struck his opponent. Instead, they embedded themselves all over; in the ground, on the trees and on the various park furnishings. When the last chain settled in place, they were set in a pattern akin to a spider's web, with his adversary caught in the center.

"How do you like that?" Mousse boomed proudly. "I call it my Binding Crow's Nest." She wasn't giving up, though. She struggled desperately to free herself from her predicament. Mousse reached into his volumous sleeve, pulled out a rapier and held the tip against her throat.

She looked at it, then at him and smiled. "Heh...well fought. I yield."

With her surrender, he put the rapier back in its mysterious binding within his sleeves. "Now, tell me," he demanded, "what was the meaning of this duel?"

The girl shrugged as best as she could under the circumstances. "There was no real meaning behind it. Like I said before, I was surprised to find another user of the Hidden Weapons techniques here in Japan. I just wanted to see how good you were."

So, his suspicions were correct. "Who are you? Where did you come from? How is it you know the Hidden Weapons techniques but have a fighting style so incredibly different?"

"Let me down and I'll happily explain everything to you." She smiled at him, and proceeded to say two words that promised to make Mousse's life a little more interesting, "...my husband."

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----


	4. Chapter 4

How could they?

"...You see...our mother was a demon. Which makes us half-demons."

How could they?

Akane lay in her bed, too numb to do much else. Her family, the people she had trusted more than anyone in the world, had been deceiving her for as long as she had been alive.

How could they?

How could she ever trust anything they every said again? Come to think of it, how could she trust anything they've ever said in the past? What else have they been keeping from her? What other lies have they told, secrets too important to tell? They have no idea how completely they've destroyed the trust Akane had in them.

She was lying on her side facing the wall. When she felt extra weight being placed on the bed, she didn't see who sat upon it. She didn't need to see to know who it was, remembering she didn't lock her window. "Ranma, I said I wanted to be alone."

"I know," came his reply.

"So what are you doing in here?"

"I thought we could be alone together."

She rolled over enough so she could glare at his back. "I don't think you understand the concept of 'being alone'."

"I just don't think we should be shut off from each other in this. I understand what you're going through."

"You 'understand'?" she interrupted.

"Yeah, I understand. I've been lied to also. I know what it can-"

She grabbed him, slammed him down on the bed and straddled his waist. All of the emotions that were bottled up came out in a torrent and she had a very crazed look in her eyes, "You understand? Don't you DARE patronize me! I just found out my entire life was a lie! HOW CAN YOU UNDERSTAND?"

"If you wanna take it out on me, that's fine. Just don't shut me out."

His words cut her like a knife. What in the world was she about to do? Defeated, she fell back onto her bed. "I-I don't want to take anything out on you. It's just..."

Ranma sat up and looked at her, intent to hear out whatever she had to say. She was so torn up; she couldn't even put what she felt into words. She simply wrapped her arms around him and hung on for dear life. It seemed the life she thought she knew was now spiraling out of control and he was her only anchor to sanity.

As he wrapped his arms around her in return, a thought occurred to Akane. Ranma was the only person in her life that had ever been completely honest with her from the get-go. It was a biting, hurtful honesty at times, though. She had finally come to respect that about him, though his delivery did demand that he needed to learn tact.

Be that as it may, it made her feel a little better. At least there was one person left she could trust.

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 4

Mousse helped his opponent down from the trap he bound her with to win their duel. He feared something like this would happen. The battle was over but the trouble was just beginning. "Husband?"

"Well, husband to be, anyway," she said with a smile.

"Let me guess...you're an Amazon from China, right?"

"Oh! You know about us already? Makes sense, since you use Amazon fighting techniques. It saves me having to explain how things work. You should be honored to have trained with them. Amazon elders are quite secretive when it comes to their techniques...especially when it comes to outsider males."

Mousse shook his head. "I'm not an outsider. I'm one as well."

Her eyes lit up, "Even better! I had no idea there were any men in the tribe as strong as you! Very impressive!"

He couldn't help but smile at the praise he was getting. It had been a long time since anyone said he was strong. But he shook his head. This was taking away from the problem at hand. "Wait! Wait! Look, we can't just jump into this. I mean we don't even know each other's names!"

"I'm Autumn," she said, beaming.

"Ah...I'm Mousse," he stuttered.

She took his arm and got uncomfortably close to him. "Very nice to meet you, Mousse," she nearly sang.

He removed his arm from her person and took a nervous step back, "Now stop that! Look, we can't do this! It...it just wouldn't be right!"

Autumn tilted her head to the side and stared at him intently. "There's someone else, isn't there?"

"Yes! That's exactly it," went Mousse, nodding intently.

"She must really love you..."

Mousse turned away, "Well...actually...she kinda...hates my guts."

Autumn facefaulted. "Lemme get this straight...you're turning me away? For a girl that doesn't even like you? Okay, what's wrong with this picture?"

"It's not as cut and dried as that. Things are complicated."

"Really? How so?"

Goodie. Explanation time. "You see, the thing is, I haven't exactly followed the rules. I haven't beaten Shampoo in a battle...erm...like I kinda did with you..."

Autumn raised her eyebrow, "I take it 'Shampoo' is her name?" Mousse nodded. "Okay...so she doesn't like you AND you haven't followed the rules to prove yourself worthy of being her consort. This just gets better and better."

She's really going to love this part. "I wanted her to be with me out of love, not because of some stupid rules. Unfortunately, before it could happen, someone else came along and defeated her. She's intent on marrying him instead." Autumn rubbed her temples, as if she developed a headache. Yup, she did like that part.

"It sounds to me like you already have three strikes against you."

"But it's a stupid situation. Ranma...that's the name of the guy who beat her...he doesn't even like her that way. He already has a fiancée and they're deeply in love. Sure, they put on a false front for everyone, and fight all the time, but it's plain to see for anyone who doesn't have blinders on. I thought for sure she would've come to that realization by now but she hasn't." Mousse shook his head. "She's chasing after someone who's in love with someone else. All she's doing is setting herself up for a broken heart. She's being such a fool..."

Autumn nodded, "You know what? I agree with you. She is being a fool. The thing is, you're doing the exact same thing she's doing. So what does that make you?" After that, she walked away, leaving Mousse stung by her words.

----+----+----+----+----

The noon hour arrived upon Nerima. On the grounds of Furinkan High School, Ukyou Kuonji sat alone, eating her lunch. Something was going on and she wasn't sure if she liked it. Ranma and Akane were absent from school. She had heard the two of them got caught up in a fight between Happousai and Taro, a couple of dangerous figures to be sure.

It could have been that they were injured. It was a possibility in any fight and it wouldn't be the first time for either of them. But she couldn't shake this sinking feeling that there was something else going on. She got that feeling from time to time, but it was never that powerful before. Time was short. She felt if she had any chance of getting Ranma to marry her, she would have to move quickly, or else he'd be lost to her forever. She'd have to come up with a plan of some sort to get Ranma to her side, but with how busy things have been with school and her restaurant, there would be no way she could come up with anything of use before she was too late. She needed help.

As if on cue, the brick fence that separated Furinkan's grounds from the outside exploded. Through the smoke came the powerful form of Ryouga Hibiki. Sometimes, things just had a way of working out so conveniently. With a smile, she stood up and trotted over to meet him. He helped her before to try and break up Ranma and Akane. She knew she could count on him to help and not double cross her like a certain purple haired Amazon floozy she knew.

For his part, Ryouga looked in really bad shape. He was breathing hard and sweating profusely. For someone in his condition to have been that tired from something as simple as destroying a brick wall, he had to have been through the ringer.

"Hey, Ryouga," greeted Ukyou, a look of concern on her face. "Are you okay, sugar?"

Ryouga looked at her, his eyes slightly glazed over. "U-Ukyou? What are you doing in Hokkaido?"

She glared at him, "You're at Furinkan High, dummy."

"Furinkan? I finally made it back!" Ryouga set his heavy pack to the ground and sat down next to it."

"So, where have you been to this time?" Ukyou asked, deciding to have a little small talk to break the ice before asking him for help.

Ryouga blushed furiously, remembering the goings on of this particular trip. "Erm...you know...here and there." He wiped the sweat from his brow, "I'm so thirsty...I haven't had anything for the last week...do you have something I could drink on you?"

Ukyou did have some green tea with her lunch, but, "Sorry, hon. I just finished drinking what I had."

His head drooped. "Tsk, just my luck." Overcome by thirst and fatigue, Ryouga passed out.

"Ryouga!" Ukyou checked his pulse. It was still beating, but it was growing faint. After so long without anything to drink and sweating as much as he was, he must've been severely dehydrated. True, they weren't that close, but she'd be damned if she wasn't going to help someone who needed it. The plots could wait; his health came first.

At least she was a strong one herself. Carrying him shouldn't be too big of a problem. Unfortunately, she didn't know where he lived, nor did she know of anyone who did. There was only one thing she could think of. "Guess I'll have to bring you home with me." She started running as fast as she could with the extra weight on her back. Stealing a glance and her once and, hopefully, future partner in crime, she added with a mix of jest and worry, "You better hang on. If you die on me, I'm going to be really ticked off."

----+----+----+----+----

Mousse sat in his room, meditating. He had been doing that a lot lately. The words of that girl, Autumn, were still ringing in his ears. She just didn't understand. What he was doing was different. Shampoo was going to need him to support her, once that mess with Saotome came to a head. It was inevitable, Mousse thought, that Ranma would confess his love to Akane and once that happened, she was going to need him to be there for her.

A nagging question came to mind, though...would she really? Even if Ranma declares his love for Akane, or even one of the other girls, would Shampoo really come to him for support? Or would she spurn him again, as she'd done so many times before?

"…She is being a fool. The thing is, you're doing the exact same thing she's doing. So what does that make you?"

Great. His thoughts were going around in circles. Not getting any benefit from his meditation, he stood up. The day was over from the time he started his meditation, so there really wasn't anything left for him to do but go to sleep. Why was it so bright, though? He looked out his window, "I can't believe it. The sun's up already? I've been up all night?"

Though he wasn't ready for it, a new day had begun. This was punctuated by a rapping at his door. "Mousse! Get up, boy!"

Mousse sighed and he opened the door to Cologne, who was on the other side. "I'm up already."

"Good," she said. "Tell me, how did yesterday's challenge go?"

"I won."

"I would expect nothing less. Still, you do not look like someone who just won a challenge."

Mousse sighed. "There were some things she said that got to me. Not to mention some complications that came up in the end."

Cologne smiled. "She's one of us, isn't she?"

Damn. Why did she have to be so wise and perceptive? "...yes."

"I thought so. And since you defeated her in combat-"

"I know, I know."

"You have a decision to make, my boy. I know you have an interest in Shampoo. And while I'm actively trying to help Shampoo get Ranma as a husband, I haven't stood in the way of your pursuit either. Unfortunately, the two of you are so bound to your paths, there are certain things neither of you have come to realize yet. But now, you have another path you can choose to take. The path you choose could lead you to the realization you've missed up to now."

Mousse practically had question marks dancing over his head. "What are you talking about? Is this a riddle of some kind?"

Cologne shook her head, "I can't give you the answer to that just yet. You must make your decision. Will you continue chasing Shampoo? Or will you consider life with this new girl? I will grant you your answer if, and only if you make the right choice. Now then, it's time to open up. Get to work, boy."

The two went downstairs to the main dining area. Cologne entered the kitchen to check on the dishes she started before fetching Mousse. Shampoo had just taken down the last of the chairs that was stacked on the dining tables and began wiping the table down.

"Good morning, Shampoo!" Mousse said, with a smile.

Not returning the smile, Shampoo nodded her reply. "Shampoo clean off all the tables already. Open door, okay?"

Oh yeah, he could definitely feel the warmth from that greeting. "Okay," Mousse said, his smile falling from his face. He drug his way over to the main entrance, undid the locks and open the doors to greet the first morning customers. Imagine his surprise when he was greeted on the other side by "...Autumn?"

She blinked in surprise as well, "Mousse? What are you doing here?"

"I live here!"

She took a step back and looked at the front of the building again. "Really? This is where you live? Wow, I had no idea. Guess I would've recognized it if I came from the back like last time."

"What are you doing here?" Mousse returned the inquiry.

She shrugged, "I'm hungry. I heard this was one of the best restaurants in town, so I decided to give it a try."

"Oh! Okay! Well, please come in!" Mousse stepped out of the way and allowed her to enter. He noticed that Shampoo was paying unusually close attention to them while they were talking.

"Welcome to Nekohaten," said Shampoo with a manufactured smile. "Please have seat." As Autumn sat down, Shampoo studied her, and her eyes lit up in recognition. She walked over to the counter between the dining area and the kitchen as if to get a menu. "You know Mousse, hmm?"

"Yep!" blurted Autumn. Mousse signaled her to stop, but she continued, "We're getting married!" Mousse's shoulders slumped. Looked as though he wouldn't have to make any decisions after all. Hearing that, Shampoo would do whatever she could to help that marriage along.

For her part, Shampoo looked as though she had taken a jolt of electricity from an unprotected wire. She turned her head back to their guest, "Married?"

"Well, I challenged him to a duel and he beat me. That whole Amazon law and all," Autumn relayed with a smile. "Of course, that all depends on the very important decision he has to make."

Instead of a menu, Shampoo grabbed a set of her bonbori and leapt into action, crushing the table Autumn was sitting at. Autumn managed to jump out of the way and she fell into a defensive stance. Mousse jumped in between them, "Shampoo! What are you doing?"

So this was the Shampoo Mousse was going on about. Autumn raised an eyebrow, "What in the world are you attacking me for? Unless...you're not jealous, are you?"

Beneath his thick glasses, Mousse's eyes widened. Could it be? He remembered when Shampoo had worn the reversal jewel and suddenly became cold and distant towards Ranma. It drove him so crazy that he actually began pursuing her. Could it be that the thought of losing him to someone else would have the same effect on Shampoo and she would pursue him the same way?

"Stop stupid talking! Shampoo not care who stupid Mousse get married to!" Mousse facefaulted. So much for that idea.

Cologne appeared from inside the kitchen, alarmed by the commotion. "What's going on out here?" Surveying the damage, Cologne caught sight of the girl that had challenged Mousse before. So, that was his new wife-to-be, hmm? But what in the world was her great-granddaughter doing? "What is the meaning of this, Shampoo?"

"This girl from Shishuei-liao village!" answered Shampoo. "She from enemy tribe!" Mousse's and Cologne's jaws dropped.

"Enemy?" wondered Autumn. Her eyes widened as well, "Y-you're from Joketsuzuko?"

As her answer, Shampoo charged, "SHAMPOO KILL!" Shampoo swung the bonbori in her right hand in a blow that would've crushed Autumn's skull if it connected, had Autumn not ducked. As if in a dance, Shampoo changed the arch of her swing so that the next attack came from above and struck with her left hand. Sensing the shift in motion, Autumn lurched backwards, allowing the bonbori to harmlessly embed itself into the floor. Using the momentum she gathered, however, Shampoo balanced her weight on the bonbori on the floor and hit her enemy in the chest with a jump kick that propelled her through the wall next to the front door.

Autumn picked herself up off the ground and shook the cobwebs from her head, preparing for the next attack. She didn't have long to wait, as Shampoo flew out of the fresh made hole, pressing her attack. To the untrained eye, it would have looked as if Shampoo's swings were wildly thrown, but Autumn could clearly see the well trained pattern they followed. Hopefully, she would be fast enough to dodge them long enough to counter.

She drew two short swords from her sleeves. Both had half of their blades going straight out for stabbing, with the other half curved into a hook. Predicting her opponent's swing, Autumn managed to hook both of Shampoo's bonbori. With her midsection wide open, Autumn landed a kick to Shampoo's stomach, causing her to crash into one of the light poles that paralleled the street.

Autumn stored Shampoo's bonbori in the folds of her sleeves where she wouldn't be able to get to them. With her disarmed, she wouldn't prove as dangerous. As she readied herself for Shampoo's next attack, Autumn caught a glimpse of Mousse, who ran out of the restaurant to watch the fight. Even though he did try to step in and protect her, it was clear by the look on his face that he still cared about her...despite the fact that she, only a few moments ago, said she didn't care for him.

It was clear this wasn't a battle she could win. Even if she did defeat Shampoo, she ran the risk of alienating Mousse. With a last, longing look at her fiancée, she turned to one of the adjoining rooftops and hopped away into the early morning sky.

"Coward!" crowed Shampoo, as she picked herself up off the ground. "You not get away Shampoo so easily!"

"You've done quite enough already, Shampoo! Get back inside," ordered Cologne.

"...Yes, great-grandmother," growled Shampoo.

As Shampoo begrudgingly did as she was told, Cologne turned her attention to Mousse. "Well boy, this new development certainly does complicate things. It just makes your decision that much more important."

Mousse slapped his forehead. As if things weren't difficult enough...

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----


	5. Chapter 5

Somewhere in Tokyo, a demon appeared.

She was a hulking figure, around nine feet tall from head to toe, two feet taller if you added her horns. Bust, waist, arms, legs; all were big and muscular, forming a lovely, yet intimidating figure. The outfit she wore was just within the bounds of decency, showing off a lot of her fiery red skin. She was a creature that looked as if she were going to make someone's...many someone's lives very miserable.

But, she was just an administrative assistant. She didn't get the fun jobs.

Things were pretty hectic back where she was from. A lot of work needed to be done and there weren't enough personnel to take care of it all. And as if she didn't have enough on her plate, she had to find someone who could take care of the latest summoning that occurred in this region. With a sigh and a ball of fire, the demon summoned a clipboard with the "DemCo" logo on the back.

She studied the personnel file bound to the front carefully. Apparently, there was an old employee whose last known location was placed somewhere in that area. It was speculated that she was put in some sort of spirit prison or something. Making the clipboard disappear again, she looked around.

The demon shivered listlessly; the place was just way too pure. It was no wonder; there was a temple just behind her. She began walking away from the shrine at a brisk pace. It was no wonder the demon had disappeared. There must've been priests or monks here that didn't take too well to her kind. Fortunately, none seemed to be around. This shouldn't be too tough.

----+----

Just down a long flight of stairs from the shrine, stood a house where a small family, the ones who took care of the temple, resided. Among them was a young girl who seemed more like a visitor than a resident these days. Though young, she was quite the beauty, with raven hued hair that fell just passed her shoulders and a sailor type school uniform she wore most of the time. Even though she didn't reside in Nerima, she was embroiled in a fair amount of trouble, not to mention the fact that she had a fair number of suitors who wished her hand in marriage.

With friends she had made in another time period, she was on a quest to recover an heirloom that has been in her family's protection for generations. The search had been grueling and, save a few pieces they collected that she kept on her person, quite unsuccessful. Though things haven't been in their favor as of yet, with all of the danger they faced, all the battles they fought, she counted herself very lucky that she and everyone she had come to care for were still alive.

Whenever things got too hectic, as was the case here, she returned to her home to recuperate. She leaned back in her lounge chair, basking in the midday sun; she knew she made the right decision coming back. There was a time when she used to take the modern amenities for granted. With the experiences she gained on her adventures, though, she swore she never would again. She just wished her friends could share in some of the creature comforts she had gotten used to.

One was able to. Although there was another lounge chair he could have used, he preferred to lounge in the branch of a nearby tree, the same way he would back in his time period. The man in question was quite the peculiarity to the normal person. He wore what looked like a red kendo uniform, had snow white, waist length hair and wore no shoes. The most interesting thing about this man, though, where his ears, which looked like they were meant for a dog.

He didn't want to get too used to the conveniences of the current time he was in. Doing so would make him soft and with everything they had to face on a constant basis, he couldn't afford that. Even though none of his friends were weaklings by any account, he knew when push came to shove and everything was on the line, it would fall to him to win the day. He had to do all he could to keep his fine edge to protect them all...especially her.

He looked down at the girl beneath him. He cared for her so deeply it hurt sometimes. His problem was that his heart went out to another woman, one he knew long before her. He wished he could share his heart with both, but that seemed to go against the sensibilities of all he knew in both time periods. Even though he loathed the possibility, the time would come when he would have to choose.

That was something to worry about in the future, though...or the past...or...bleh. Time travel was so confusing. He sat back into the tree and closed his eyes. Best not to think about any of that stuff.

Suddenly, his eyes popped open and he sat up. His enhanced senses detected something in the area that was out of place. He leapt out of the three and landed aptly next to the girl down on the lounge chair. Seeing the alarm in his eyes, the girl sat up as well.

"What's the matter?" she asked.

He sniffed the air, "There's a demon close by."

Her eyes widened, "Here? You-you don't think it's after the jewel shards, do you?"

The man cracked his knuckles, "Only one way to find out..."

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 5

Another school day had come and gone; Ranma and Akane were absent from school yet again. Ukyou was worried something major had happened. The thought of the two exclaiming their love and running away together came to mind, but she dismissed that quickly. The way they acted towards each other, that was very unlikely. Gossip as to why they were absent for so long had spread throughout school and word was from a couple of eyewitnesses, they had gotten caught up in a fight between Taro and the old pervert. During the fight, something may have happened to Akane. Ranma was very protective of all of his fiancées. If something did happen to Akane, it would make sense that he'd stay with her. Even though Akane was a rival for Ranma's affections, Ukyou wished no serious harm to befall her. She'd have to stop by to make sure Akane was okay.

Ukyou made her way back to her home and let herself in. Hopefully, the Tendos wouldn't mind her popping in late at night for her visit. With the way business had been going, that would be the only time she'd have free. Plopping her book bag down by the door, she undid her hair and went to get something to drink.

Speaking of drinks, she wondered how Ryouga was doing. He was in really bad shape when she brought him in. Any normal human would've been dead with the amount of fluids he lost. Fortunately he was a stubborn one. For a person so depressed, he certainly had a powerful will to live. Ukyou placed him in her guest room, feeding him water from an eyedropper to rehydrate him gradually. He was still asleep when she left, but he appeared to be in much better shape than he was yesterday.

Grabbing a can of juice from one of her large, industrial refrigerators, she noticed the door to her back yard was opened. Instinctively peering through, she found Ryouga in the middle of his exercises. He looked to be doing a lot better.

There was a ferocious beauty to his forms. The style he used took advantage of his bullish strength to power through his enemy's defenses and pummel them into submission. There didn't appear to be any room for misdirection or finesse, just a straight-ahead push towards his goal. That seemed to be the philosophy Ryouga lived by. Watching his lithe form in motion, shirtless as he was, Ukyou couldn't help but blush. He was very handsome, after all. He also had a very big heart and nowhere near the ego Ranma had. She couldn't help but wonder why he never had a girlfriend. Well, when they finally got their heads together and formulated a plan, he wouldn't have that problem anymore, as Akane would be all his...which would leave Ranma to be the doting fiancée/husband to her. Ukyou smiled just thinking about it.

Somewhere in his exercises, Ryouga fell to his knees, gasping for air. Ukyou ran to him and put her hand on his shoulders, "Hey, hon. You okay?" She asked.

"Yeah," he answered though his heavy panting. "Just got dizzy all of a sudden."

"It's not surprising. After what you were just through, you're pushing yourself way too hard. Here..." she handed him the can of juice she was going to drink herself. "And for goodness sakes, man, take a seat!"

Helping him to his feet, Ukyou marched him back inside and sat him down at one of the dining tables. She went back to the kitchen, got another can of juice for herself and joined him. As she sat there, watching him down the juice, she realized, after all they had been through, including the time he saved her from that monkey-man on Togenkyou, she really didn't know much about him. There was nothing better to do at the moment, so she dug for details.

"So...where do you go to school?" she asked him.

Gulping down the last bit of juice, Ryouga put the can down, "School?" Ukyou nodded. He blushed and turned away from her, "I...err...I don't go to school."

Ukyou raised her eyebrow, "You don't go to school?"

He scratched the back of his head, "Well, Ranma and I were in the same Jr. High School when we were younger. We got into a lot of altercations and he finally pushed me into challenging him to a proper duel. But he was too chicken to fight me and he ran away." Maybe Ukyou was wrong about the ego part. She seriously doubted Ranma was afraid. "I followed him on his training trip, to see to it that we would finally have our duel..." Ryouga hung his head. "That was when our feud really began. After that...school just seemed unimportant."

That really caught Ukyou's interest. Wasn't that the same training trip Ranma told her about before? The one where he got cursed to become a girl? Could Ryouga have gotten cursed too? "What happened?"

His blush deepened, "I'd rather not say!" She was sure of it now. He DID have a curse. She grinned inwardly; she would have to find out exactly what he turns into. She didn't know it, but she was grinning outwardly too and it made Ryouga very uncomfortable.

Ukyou shook her head clear. She had an opening for her request...she couldn't get distracted now. Her newfound quest to uncover his cursed form will have to wait for later. "Listen, sugar, I know we both want the same thing: to break Ranma and Akane up so that I can get him and you can get her. But I have to say, this changes things."

"What do you mean?"

"Akane's a smart gal and she's getting smarter every day. You don't think she'd want to get involved with a dummy, do you?"

"She's involved with Ranma, isn't she?"

Ukyou's eye twitched. She didn't appreciate the jab, but if she was going to convince Ryouga to stay, she couldn't lose her cool. "The POINT is, if Akane's anything like me, she appreciates the brawn, but she's going to want a brain to go along with it. She's going to want someone at her educational level to have intelligent conversations with. If you want that person to be you, you're going to have to do more to better yourself."

"You mean, I should go back to school?"

"Exactly."

Ryouga shook his head, "I'm so far behind, I wouldn't know where to begin. I can't even find where I live so that I can find out what High School I'm supposed to be going to."

"You manage to find your way here often enough," Ukyou said, "you can stay here."

"S-stay here? With you"

Ukyou nodded. "There are equivalency tests you can take to make sure you're placed in the proper grade level. I can tutor you with that and anything else you need help with. And in return for everything, you can help me run the restaurant."

"I don't know," went Ryouga. The whole arrangement did sound nice, but it had the chance of reigning in his freedom.

"Think about it," continued Ukyou. "The work, here and at school would go a lot smoother with the two of us together. On top of that, we can put plans together to get Ranma and Akane by our sides where they belong. The closest we've gotten to success was when we worked together. I know if we start working together again, we can get the ones we love with us in no time."

He thought about it. It did make sense. Doing what they were doing apart wasn't working very well. It was about time he changed tactics. And it would be nice to have an actual home for a change. "I'll do it."

They shook hands and Ukyou smiled, "You won't regret this. Now, before the restaurant opens, go wash up. You stink!"

That big sweat drop appeared on Ryouga's head. She was wrong about one thing. He was regretting it already.

----+----+----+----+----

Autumn stood in the park where she and Mousse had their duel. Apparently, the Nerima Martial-Arts Repair Crew hadn't shown up there yet, as the markings from their battle still littered the area. It was only one day removed but it already felt like many lifetimes ago. She couldn't look at the battlefield any longer; it was too painful.

She walked over to the swing set and sat down on one of the swings. It was just so typical of the way things went. She finally found a man who captivated her; a man who proved he was strong enough to handle her affections and he had to be from a rival tribe. Even though Mousse was still hooked on that other girl, she could tell something was there between them as well. But this...she couldn't see how they could get over their inherent tribal enmity.

Autumn looked up; the sky, which had been clear blue for the last few days, was marred with the gray of oncoming clouds. Seem fitting with the way things had been going lately. This Nerima seemed to be a nice town with a lot of promising possibilities for her. Now, she didn't think she could bring herself to stay there. It was a shame to have to leave already, she was just getting used to the place. But if staying there meant she had to keep feeling what she felt at that moment, it wouldn't be worth it in the long run.

"Hey..."

She looked up and saw that face she had been daydreaming about, with the overly thick glasses and framed by that long black hair. She gave him a sad smile, "Hey yourself."

Mousse sat down on a swing besides her, "Look...I'm sorry about what happened this morning."

Autumn shook her head, "Don't be. It wasn't your fault. I just wish things could've been different." She couldn't bring herself to look at him. She likely would've broken down if she had. "Aren't you taking a risk even being here talking to me now?"

"Hey, I'm already not one to follow tribal rules one hundred percent. May as well break a few more, right?"

She laughed despite herself. "Well, one good thing came of this. It made your decision a lot easier."

He looked skyward as well. Clouds rolling in? Hope it's not going to rain any time soon. "No...if anything, it's made things a lot harder."

Harder? What could he be thinking? Did he not know about the severe trouble he could get into with his tribal elders for fraternizing with an enemy? She wasn't too thrilled with the possibility of getting in trouble with her tribal leadership either. The public humiliation she'd have to endure...she shuddered to think about it. But while her tribe was big on psychological punishment, his tribe was more creative when it came to their judgments...training at Jusenkyou for example. She could handle the aftermath of her sentence...could he?

Autumn's head snapped up as her keen senses alerted her of incoming danger. "You got to be kidding me," she said to herself. Whatever it was that gave her that feeling, it was getting closer.

"What is it?" Mousse asked, concerned.

"Hopefully, it's nothing. Stay here, just to be safe." With that, Autumn ran out of the park.

Mousse couldn't figure out what was wrong, his own sense of danger not alerting him to anything. Of course, he wasn't one to sit on the sidelines, if he could help things. "Nope...no staying here and being safe for me!" He jumped to his feet and followed her.

----+----

"You're startin' to make a habit of missin' school, ain't ya?" Ranma asked his fiancée as they strode through town.

"I just can't bring myself to face anyone at school, yet," answered Akane. Though she didn't feel up to going back to school yet, she also didn't want to stay in that house. Since their little talk, her father and oldest sister have tried to speak to her. With all of the dishonesty she had to endure until then, she couldn't be bothered with anything else they had to say. "At any rate, what would I tell my friends about...these changes? I doubt they'll take too well to finding out I'm a monster."

"You don't have to tell 'em anything if you don't want to," Ranma shrugged. "Of course, you'll have to be careful with stuff like gym, if you don't want it to come up." Akane wasn't sure if that was meant as a pun or not...though, she didn't think he was clever enough to mean that as a joke. "And how much longer are you going to avoid your family?"

Akane sighed, "Who knows? Maybe the rest of forever?" Ranma looked at her. "Come on, Ranma, they didn't have to hide it from me as long as they did! If they knew something like this could've happened, they should've told me earlier!"

"And if they did, how would you have taken it?"

"I don't know..."

"Probably as well as you're taking it now. On top of that, you would've been worrying yourself to death, wonderin' if every little twinge you felt meant you were changin'."

"So what?" went Akane, getting angry. "You're saying they were right in keeping this from me?"

Ranma shrugged again. "I dunno. I can't say if they were right or not. All I know is they did what they thought was best, since they didn't know if you were gonna change or not. I just wouldn't hold it against 'em, is all."

Akane shook her head. He was one to talk. He didn't exactly forgive and forget when it came to a lot of the stuff his father did to him. Of course, he never held a grudge against his father either. She didn't know what to do. She just didn't feel like forgiving them just yet.

"YOU THERE!"

Ranma and Akane stopped in mid stride. A strange blonde girl stood in front of them, blocking their path. "I don't know how you managed to be here without me noticing before, but now that I found you, you won't get away!"

Akane looked at her fiancée, "And who is this?"

"How am I supposed to know?" went Ranma, defensively.

"Usually, when some new girl appears, saying stuff like that, she ends up saying she's engaged to you."

"I doubt that. I don't even know her."

"I recall you didn't remember who Ukyou was either."

"Err..."

"PREPARE TO DIE!" Autumn charged the couple, a pair of scimitars drawn. Ranma jumped away, intending to draw this new figure away from his fiancée. If she was, somehow, involved with him, he didn't want Akane hurt in the crossfire. Of course, if she was, somehow, involved with him, he would have to have a 'word' with his father who had a bad habit of putting him into situations like that.

Coming back to ground, Ranma dropped into a defensive position ready for any oncoming attacks. This girl looked to use a similar fighting style to Mousse. It shouldn't be too hard to bring her down, if such was the case. He waited, but no attack ever came. He looked back towards Akane and found that she was the one under attack. "Huh?"

This girl, whomever she was, was no slouch. Her attack speed was blinding. Yet, somehow, Akane was able to expertly dodge every strike. Ranma was amazed Akane hadn't been sliced in two yet. The girl was in Shampoo's league when it came to speed. Sure, Akane had gotten better recently due to rigorous training, but she had never displayed this kind of speed before.

Apparently, Akane didn't realize herself what she was doing. She was too busy doing it to notice. "Who are you? What are you attacking me for?" she demanded.

"Do you even have to ask?" returned Autumn. "I could detect your stench from a mile away, demon!" Akane's eyes widened. How could this stranger have known? "It's my duty as a demon hunter to purge your vile kind from this world!"

Autumn backed Akane into a fence that blocked the walkway off from a gully filled with water. With her prey cornered, Autumn went for a final decapitating strike. However, Ranma got in between them, grabbing her wrists, protecting his fiancée. "I dunno who you are, lady, but there ain't no way I'm gonna let you hurt Akane!"

"So, you got this poor guy under your spell and are using him as your shield?" Autumn taunted. "You pathetic creature!"

"That's funny," Ranma chuckled, "usually I'm the evil one who has you under my spell, Akane!"

Of course, that was when Mousse decided to show up. His blood boiling at the scene of Ranma and Autumn struggling, he rushed in and tackled the pigtailed martial artist. Falling to the ground, Ranma instinctively used his momentum to roll, kicking Mousse off of his person. Mousse, for his part, managed to flip in mid air and land safely on his feet.

"Mousse! What do you want now?" went Ranma.

"Don't you have enough girls chasing you?" blasted Mousse. "Leave Autumn alone!"

"Leave HER alone?" echoed Ranma. "She's the one who attacked us!"

"What?"

With the obstacle out of the way, it was time for the finishing shot. Autumn focused her ki and the swords began glowing a bright light blue. The purified energies along with the silvery steel of the swords would certainly cleanse the world of the defiled monster. She made an arching swing, the energies in the swords exploding as it came into contact with the ground. Their intended target, however, managed to jump out of the way at the last second, balancing herself on the top of the fence as Ranma usually did on their walks to and from school.

Undeterred, Autumn charged her purified ki into the swords again and leapt after Akane. Akane sidestepped the strike, however, and as Autumn reached her level, she grabbed the Amazon's plentiful robe and yanked with the momentum, ensuring Autumn would continue over, falling into the gully.

Autumn's eyes bugged out of her head, "NO! NOT THE WATER!"

-Splash-

The three teens still on street level looked down into the gully. That was quite the commotion she made about the water. All three immediately wondered the same thing...could it be that this new girl also had a curse? The waters bubbled and a figure broke through to the surface. It was Autumn, still in her same form. Apparently, she had no curse. However, the blonde in her hair was slowly washing away, turning her hair a deepening red.

Autumn growled, "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MANY TIMES I HAD TO DYE MY HAIR TO GET IT THAT PERFECT SHADE OF BLONDE?"

She launched herself at Akane again. Autumn no longer had her swords, losing them in the waters below. So she grabbed what appeared to be a spirit ward and as she passed her opponent, she placed it on her forehead. Akane howled in pain as she was enveloped in what looked like a ball of electricity. Unable to bear the pain, she fell to the sidewalk with a sickening thud.

"AKANE!" shouted Ranma.

"What in the world did you do?" chastised Mousse.

Autumn tried to ring her clothes dry, "I just slew a demon."

"That's not a demon!" informed Mousse. "That's Akane Tendo! She's a friend of mine! And she's the fiancée I told you that Ranma likes!"

It was then that Autumn remembered Mousse's explanation and all of the names clicked. "Err...Oops..."

-WHAM-

This time, it was Autumn that fell to the ground unconscious. Akane stood over her prone form with the spirit ward crumpled in one hand and her idiot slaying mallet of justice in the other. "THAT HURT, YOU KNOW!"

----+----

"So, you're a half-demon, hmm?" Once everyone finally settled down, they went back to the park and explained their interesting stories to one another. "Now I see why that ward didn't work all the way on you," said Autumn, rubbing her head where she was struck.

"That's certainly a new development," Mousse said. "When in the world did this happen?"

"A couple of days ago," answered Akane. "Trust me, no one was more surprised than I was."

Ranma blushed, "That's what you think."

A smirk appeared on Mousse's face. "Really? Is there something else in this story that you hadn't told us?"

"Nothin' you gotta concern yourself with," snapped Ranma. "So, what about you? You got yourself engaged to her? What does this mean about you and Shampoo?"

Mousse shrugged, "Honestly, I have no idea..."

"Feh," went Akane. "If I were you, I wouldn't marry either of them. They're both out of their minds."

"Hey!" shot Autumn.

"You have to admit," said Mousse, trying to stop another fight from erupting, "you didn't make that great a first impression."

Autumn seethed, but finally relented the fact. "You're right." She stood up and bowed politely to Ranma and Akane. "I'm sorry I attacked you the way I did. It was uncalled for. Since it was my mistake, I won't come at you as a slayer, nor will I give you the kiss of death for defeating me earlier." She stood straight up and shot Akane a glare, "But you better keep yourself out of trouble. I'll be keeping an eye on you, half-demon." With that, she left. Mousse stood up, gave the engaged couple a shrug and followed.

Ranma laughed, "Jeez, it just gets better and better here, doesn't it?"

"Like I said...out of their minds," mumbled Akane, shaking her head.

----+----+----+----+----

"Finally!"

The demon's assistant came upon the biggest tree there was in the area. She could almost see the spiritual energy that seeped from its branches. This was going to be a somewhat delicate procedure. She would need to slice the spirit binding off of the bark without damaging the tree. Any damage inflicted to the tree could also damage the imprisoned demon inside.

Extending her hand, an energy sword materialized in a ball of fire. Taking careful aim, she brought the sword up and swung it down with all of her might. The tree took no damage at all. Unfortunately, it looked as though the binding didn't either.

"Hey! What are you doing there?"

From the direction of the shrine, came the man with the dog-ears with the dark haired girl on his back. The assistant studied the dog-eared man carefully with a raised eyebrow. "Nah. Just a half-  
demon." A half-breed like him wouldn't be satisfactory for the job. She turned her attention back to the tree and brought her sword up for another swing.

-Twang-

The fiery energy that enveloped the sword dissipated. The assistant looked at it in shock, then back to the newcomers. The dark haired girl leveled a bow and arrow at her, the arrow shining with purified spiritual energies. Just great! That must be the priestess of the temple. If she was going to finish her errand, she'd have to do away with them first. She roared, her eyes and hands glowing a fiery red. The demon's assistant charged the duo, looking to take both of them out in one shot.

Faster than the assistant could account for, the dog-eared half-demon struck her in the face. She paused for a moment, then fell to her knees and started crying. "WAAAH! YOU BRUTE! HOW COULD YOU HIT MY BEAUTIFUL FACE LIKE THAT?"

He facefaulted. That wasn't exactly what he expected. He regained his composure and stood over her, "Okay, just what the hell were you about to do?"

The assistant sniffled a couple of times and answered, "There was a recent summoning in this area, but we're so busy, there aren't enough demons to answer the call. But there is a demon that's imprisoned in that tree."

"A demon's really imprisoned in our sacred tree?" the dark haired girl inquired. "And you were going to set it free?"

The assistant nodded. "And I would've gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling kids!" Just then, the binding on the front of the tree split in two and fell apart. The three gathered were blinded by a bright light that emanated from where the first cut was made. "Well, what do you know? My first attempted worked after all!"

When the light died, what appeared to be a beautiful woman stood in front of the sacred tree. "Ah, it's so nice to be free from that damned tree! Heh...I made a rhyme!" She stretched to work the kinks out.

The assistant stood to her feet and addressed the newly freed demon. "Welcome back to the land of the living. Sorry to have to do this so soon, but we're really short handed and we need you to take care of an assignment...erm..." The assistant made her clipboard reappear and she looked over the personnel file again. "Ah...Arame!"

The demon, Arame smiled. It had been a very long time since she heard anyone speak her name. "I'm afraid not. I have my own business to take care of!" She brought up her hand and fired a bolt of energy at the assistant, knocking her back.

The assistant propped herself up on her elbows, "Dammit, I need to start getting hazard pay!" She enveloped herself in a ball of fire and disappeared.

Arame turned her attention to the two that remained. Checking out the dog-eared man, she licked her lips, "Hmm...Pleasure before business."

He drew an old, rusty sword he kept on his side and in a flash of energy, it became a fearsome looking blade. "I don't know why she brought you out, but I'm gonna do away with you RIGHT NOW!" He brought the huge sword to bear and charged, intending to slice her right down the middle.

However, Arame dodged his attack and positioned herself behind him. Before he could recover to make a second strike she grabbed him by the neck. "My, you are a scrappy one, aren't you, puppy-boy?" she taunted in a melodic voice. Using her free hand, she trailed a finger from his chest, down his stomach and...points south. Her eyes lit up, "Oh! Oh my! The pup is very gifted! What do you say you stick with me, hmm? I can show you some...interesting spots where you could bury that 'bone'."

"Wha?" he stammered. This wasn't the first time someone hit on him while in the heat of battle. At least it was a woman this time. Still, he wasn't quite sure how to take it.

The dark haired girl definitely didn't like what she saw. She growled, baring her teeth like a ferocious animal. "SIT BOY!" At her words, a magical necklace that lay around the dog-eared man began to glow and it slammed him into the ground. "And as for you...TAKE THIS!" She drew back on her bow and fired. Once shooting through the air, the arrow erupted with spirit energy.

Arame tried to shield herself from the attack, but the arrow penetrated her defenses. The block managed to deflect the arrow enough to keep it from striking her full on, but the pure energy it gave off damaged her severely. If the girl managed to shoot off another arrow, she'd be done for. "Another time." She blew the dog-eared half demon a kiss and then flew away.

He managed to scrape himself off the ground and dusted himself off. "Was that really necessary?"

"Was it really necessary for you to just stand there and let her grope you?"

He harrumphed and turned away, looking in the direction Arame flew. "Whoever she is, you hurt her good. Even still, she's a dangerous one. Whoever she's after is going to be in for one hell of a fight..."

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----


	6. Chapter 6

Kasumi let out a deep depressed sigh as she prepared dinner. It was hoped that Akane would never have to go through that change once her seventh birthday passed. She swore, though, if it were to come, she would do her best to train Akane in their mother's place. Kasumi had no illusions that she would do as good a job as their mother, but now that the opportunity had presented itself, she would've liked to have done her proud. 

Unfortunately, that wasn't how it was going. Akane has been so upset that she's refused to speak to any of them...even her. Though she hadn't even tried any methods she had in mind, Kasumi had already failed in her duties. She had always done what she thought was best for everyone in her mother's absence. Guess it wasn't good enough.

True, it wouldn't have been so hard if Akane weren't angered so easily. Kasumi figured if she let Akane go and sort things out on her own, she'd eventually calm down and they could start the training. She knew, though, that if their mother were alive, she'd have the right words ready to smooth over the situation so that it wouldn't have even gotten to this point.

With another deep sigh, Kasumi checked the pot on the stove. The rice was all that was left. Soon, it would be time to serve dinner. There was still much to be done and Kasumi couldn't afford to let herself get down. At any rate, if Akane does calm down and training does begin, Kasumi couldn't afford to let doubts hinder her. On the contrary, it should help her determine how to go about training Akane once it picks up. One of the things their mother stressed during her and Nabiki's training was the necessity of keeping a cool head. With their enhanced abilities, they would need to be careful so that they wouldn't accidentally harm someone they cared about. However, Kasumi didn't think Akane would be one to ever have a cool head about anything. It would totally conflict with her fiery, passionate nature.

That being the case, she understood why their father took her aside and began training her in the martial arts. Even before the change, Akane was already unusually strong. Kasumi shuddered to think how her youngest sister would be now, if she didn't have the focus and discipline from the martial arts training to temper her personality and provide an outlet for her frustrations. Right now, though, she didn't think her father would be able to handle that anymore. Ranma would be the key. Even though totally human, he should be strong enough to continue Akane's training. And, though she hated to admit it, if Akane's fire and passions had been enhanced as well, she'd probably need Ranma to provide her with an outlet for a number of things. Kasumi would have to talk with him again.

Picking up a bowl, she began scooping large portions of food. She shouldn't get too far ahead of herself. Right now, all she could hope for would be for Akane to have calmed down enough to sit at the dinner table with them.

Abruptly, Kasumi stopped as a frighteningly familiar sensation overwhelmed her. She staggered backwards and dropped the bowl to the floor, spilling the food in it and shattering the dish. Alarmed by the sound, Nabiki rushed in to check on her sister.

"Hey, Kasumi! Are you okay?"

"Unn...yes, I am. I just dropped a bowl, that's all."

Nabiki walked up to her sister and looked her straight in the eye, "YOU don't just drop dishes like that. Something's wrong, isn't it?"

Yes. "No, I'm fine...really."

Nabiki couldn't believe it. Kasumi just lied to her...didn't do a very good job at it either. She could clearly see the worry in Kasumi's eyes. Nabiki nodded at her sister's answer, playing along, "Okay then. Do you need help setting the table?"

"No. I can handle it. Can you let father and Mr. Saotome know that dinner's being served?"

"Sure."

Watching her sister leave, Kasumi knew that Nabiki was aware something was up. Kasumi could do many things well...lying wasn't one of them. She looked out the kitchen window, hoping desperately that what she felt was just a figment of her imagination.

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 6

It was faint, but Arame could feel it. Her rival, Moriko Tendo was close.

She hovered in the center of Tokyo trying to get her bearings, which was difficult from the throbbing pain she felt. That girl's arrow injured her far greater than she first estimated. Finding it more and more difficult to stay in the air, she set down in the middle of town and hid in an alleyway.

Her breathing became ragged from the exertion. Through the discomfort, she managed to focus in on where her adversary was. A good thing, to be sure, but it had a major downside. If she could feel where Moriko was, then surely Moriko could feel her presence as well. A confrontation in her current state would, surely, end badly for her...being bound to a tree would be nothing in comparison. She would need to heal and recharge before she began her assault. Fortunately, looking at the bustling city around her, there wasn't a shortage of candidates who would jump at the chance to help her get better.

----+----

It had been too long since he had a night out on the town. It was just the thing he needed to take his mind off of things. But now, his relaxation jaunt had come to an end. Refreshed in body and mind, young Tatewaki Kuno was ready to, once again, battle in the name of truth, justice and honor. No foe was more dangerous than that of fatigue and surely, it was his day to day stresses that kept him from giving that accursed Ranma Saotome the smiting the so richly deserved.

"What do you guys want?" came a woman's voice. Kuno's ears perked up.

In an alley just out of normal viewing range was the woman in question. She had dark hair bound in two pigtails, one draped on each shoulder. Her eyes were the deepest brown he had ever seen. She was clad in a simple white dress with a belt across her waist. She wasn't as shapely as other women he knew (especially, his own pigtailed goddess), but there was something about her that he found irresistible. As he walked closer, he found she wasn't alone.

"We just want to have a little fun. What do you say?" answered a male voice. There were three of them and they had her cornered like a pack of wolves. Surely, something foul was afoot.

"Oh, no! I just couldn't!" The woman said this in an obviously half-hearted manner, but Kuno couldn't detect this. Clearly, she said no and those ruffians continued to accost her. They needed to be taught a lesson in how to properly treat a lady. Fortunately, he was just the person to give such a lesson.

"I do believe the lady has asked you to leave her alone!" said Kuno in the noblest voice he could muster.

"And just who are you?" asked one of the men.

He brought his bokken to bear and answered, "I am the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High! I am the avenging angel who shall dispense justice upon you vagabonds who dare to threaten such a fair maiden. I am Takewaki Kuno!" As he stated his name, a bolt of lightening flashed and thunder rolled in the background for no apparent reason.

"Looks like we have a hero on our hands. Let's show him what we do to heroes around here."

Kuno studied the men as they surrounded him. What fools these men be. It was clear these cretins had no chance against him. Normally, such lowly thugs would be beneath his notice. He looked at the woman and smirked. As always, for a lovely lady, he would be willing to make exceptions. In what appeared to have been three flashes of light, two of the three thugs were on the ground unconscious.

"Like I said...we're going to show you what we do to heroes around here...just as soon as I'm done with my nap..." At saying this, the third thug fell to the ground unconscious as well.

"Feh. Barely worth my time." He went up to the woman and took her hand in his, "I trust they haven't harmed you, dear lady?"

Now this was an interesting man. He's probably as vigorous as the three men he just dispatched…if not more so. "I am fine," the woman said. "How can I ever repay you?"

Never one to miss such an opportunity, Kuno said, "Repayment is not necessary. However, if you insist, then I shall allow you to date me!"

The woman raised her eyebrow; one of those guys. She gave him a predatory smile, "Date? That's all? I have something much better in mind..."

----+----+----+----+----

Things have been slow lately. For Dr. Tofu, that served him just fine. He spent far too much time tending wounds on teenage martial artists showing off their newest techniques. Not that he minded them, after all, he was very close to many of them. Not only that, but every now and then they came with ailments that really challenged his knowledge of medicine. That, above all else, he enjoyed. However, he really wanted to use his expertise on the elderly folk in the neighborhood; those specifically who couldn't help themselves. That was where he got his greatest joy.

Unfortunately, with the chaos that surrounded his clinic, they stopped coming to him. So he started making house calls. It was bothersome to begin with, but as time went along, he could see the benefits. It did him good to get out of that stuffy office every once in a while and the exercise did him good. More than that, it actually increased his clientele. There were more elderly residents in the area than he knew, most of which weren't able to make the trip to him. And as an added bonus, he came across a new herbal remedy shop that had opened a few days ago. He wondered why he hadn't done this a long time ago.

It was after such a house call that he was returning to his clinic. He had just finished working on a sweet old couple that had infected each other with a cold. Not serious at the moment, but in their weakened conditions, it could've quickly became pneumonia. Using some of his medicinal herbs, he gave them a cold curing tea he knew would fix them up in no time. The gratitude they had in their eyes was priceless. However, he used up the last of the herbs that was in his med kit. Before he could see anyone else, he'd have to restock.

Sliding his clinic door open, he walked in and found his next patient waiting for him there. Mousse was sitting in one of the chairs in his waiting room with blood running down his forehead. Looking at the Mousse shaped hole in his clinic's ceiling, it was easy to deduce how the nearly blind martial artist entered.

"Hello, Mousse," Dr. Tofu greeted. "I guess I don't have to ask how you're doing. What happened? Another fight with Ranma?"

Mousse shook his head, "Shampoo." After his run-in with Autumn, Ranma and Akane at the park, he went back to his place to ponder more on his dilemma. Amazingly, the hole in the front of their restaurant had been fixed already. He saw Shampoo as soon as he walked inside and they had a talk. It appeared as though Shampoo had something of a change of heart. After thinking about it, she said she he shouldn't marry Autumn. By the rules of their tribe, if he were to marry her, he would have to give up his standing as a part of the Joketsuzuko tribe. And it wouldn't do for their tribe to lose such a good, strong man. With such words of high praise, surely it was a sign that she did care for him. He tried to give her a hug and, as a result, he took a trip to Dr. Tofu's clinic, the hard way.

Dr. Tofu nodded. "I see. Wait here, I'll get you something for your injuries." He went back into his observation room and began rummaging through a cabinet.

"Doctor, I was wondering if I could ask your advice about something."

"Sure. Don't know how good it'll be, but let her rip."

"Well," Mousse paused, trying to find the right words. "If you had to choose between someone you love and someone who loved you, who would you pick?"

Uh oh...relationship question. "Sorry. I'm a doctor, not a relationship therapist."

Mousse sighed, "I'm just stuck in the middle of something and I need help figuring it out. I was hoping to get some perspective from an outside source."

Dr. Tofu closed the cabinet he was in and started searching through another one. The boy seemed so down, he just couldn't go without helping him, even if it did go against his better judgment. "Well, I suppose it all depends. How does the person you love feel about you?"

"I think that's pretty obvious," said Mousse, pointing to his bleeding head.

"I see. And how do you feel about the person in love with you?"

"I don't know. I mean, I like her well enough, but I don't know her at all. We just met a couple of days ago. I don't even see how she can feel this way about me already."

Tofu raised his eyebrow. He was surprised Mousse would even bring that up. With how quick Shampoo fell for Ranma...even with how quick he fell for Kasumi, it seemed like the sudden storms of love were far more in the norm than any other way. "Well, if you would really like my honest opinion," he started. "This girl who's in love with you...I think you should go ahead and get to know her better. You could like her, or maybe you won't. Who knows? Besides, maybe if you weren't around so much, Shampoo would start to miss you and you could have a better chance with her, should you still want it."

"What? I don't want to use one girl to get the other!"

"Don't get me wrong. I'm not advocating you using anybody. What I am saying is give this other girl a proper chance before you make any decisions. While you do that, it may prompt Shampoo to re-evaluate things. There is that chance that, in doing so, you could lose both, but you aren't getting anywhere doing what you're doing now, are you?"

"I guess not."

"Don't look so down. Just take her out on a date...maybe go on a picnic or a walk through the park. It's not like you have to marry this other girl or anything."

"Well..."

"This isn't good," Dr. Tofu interrupted. "I don't have any herbs left to treat your wound." Dr. Tofu cleaned off Mousse's head and applied a dried bandage to cover the wound. "You're not dizzy or anything, are you? Not seeing double?"

"No. Except for a dull ache, I'm fine," answered Mousse.

"Good. I want to get some herbs on here as quickly as possible to stave off possible infections. If you could go with me to the new herbal remedy shop, I could apply it immediately."

"Okay."

----+----

It was nice to actually be able to walk where he was going for a change. No unscheduled flights through space, no crashing through people's ceilings disrupting their dinner...or falling into a girl's changing room. Even though he wouldn't be able to see anything, the girls always gave him a good pounding for his troubles anyway. Maybe Dr. Tofu was right. Perhaps it is time to cut back on this time with Shampoo and give Autumn a chance. But then, what if he ended up really liking her back? After all he had gone through to be with Shampoo, could he really give up so easily? Why was this so hard?

It didn't take them long before they got to the herbal remedy shop. Mousse couldn't help but laugh at the name: 'After The Fall'. How ironic.

Dr. Tofu slid open the door and walked in. "Hello?"

"Dr. Tofu! Hello!" came a familiar voice. Mousse jaw dropped. There was no way in the world...Right on cue, she came out, confirming his suspicions. "How may I help..." Autumn stopped, staring at Mousse. Her hair was completely red now, having washed out the rest of the ruined blond dye.

Dr. Tofu looked back and forth between Mousse and Autumn. It didn't take long for him to put two and two together. "I take it you know each other?"

"You could say that," Mousse said.

"We have this uncanny knack of running in to each other at unexpected times," added Autumn.

Dr. Tofu smiled, "Maybe it's fate?" Mousse sighed in resignation.

Autumn went up to Mousse and fingered the bandage on his head. "Let me guess, a giant, purple buzz saw hit you, right?"

"He has some cuts that I would like to treat, but I'm out of the herbs that I need to do so," Dr. Tofu informed her.

"Not to worry. I have just the thing for it." She went to the back room to get the necessary medicine.

Tofu leaned in to whisper to Mousse, "I really think you should give her a chance. Somehow, I don't think you'll be disappointed. It couldn't hurt." Mousse buried his head in his hand, and winced in pain as he touch his wound inadvertently. "Not anymore than it does already, anyway," the doctor added.

----+----+----+----+----

"Isn't this just my luck..."

Akane laid back on her bed, thankful the day had finally come to an end. Once again, she didn't feel like being around anyone, especially her so-called family; which meant another skipped dinner. It didn't matter too much, though. She had way too much on her mind to have an appetite. She sighed heavily and closed her eyes.

"I still can't believe this half-demon thing...and of course, as soon as I find that out, I run smack into a demon hunter. Pfft...how in the world could this week get any w..." She had to stop there. With all she had experienced, with all she had witnessed, Akane knew that when one asked that sort of question, it had an annoying habit of being answered. She just sighed again and tried to relax. She would have drifted off to sleep, had there not been a knock on her window.

Akane shook her head, "Ranma...well, at least he knocked this time." After the revelation, Akane wouldn't open the door for anyone, which was why Ranma only came through the window now. She knew that no one else would (or could) follow him that route so she felt safe letting him in.

"Yo, Akane."

"What is it?"

"I brought up your dinner. Thought you might want it."

She smiled, "You made it all this way without eating it yourself? How thoughtful!"

"Very funny," he deadpanned. Actually, he was very tempted to, but he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of knowing. "They're all very worried about you, you know?"

Akane took the plate of food Ranma offered and started eating. "Frankly, I don't care."

"I ain't sayin' you have to forgive them or anything...just talk to them."

"Why should I?"

"So they can stop bugging me?" That comment made Akane laugh, despite herself. "Hey, I got a laugh out of ya. It's a start."

Akane shook her head, but the smile that had planted itself on her face took its time going away, "I just can't bring myself to face them right now. Just thinking about what they did...I just think it would be better if I had a little space."

"That ain't so bad," said Ranma. "As long as ya don't keep that space there for long. Nothin' more important than family, after all. They're the only one ya got."

"Pfft, please. Talk about the importance of family from the guy who beats up his father every chance he gets?" She went to take another bite from her plate and noticed everything was gone. Guess she had more of an appetite than she thought.

Ranma faltered, "Err...well...me and pop are different."

Akane glared at him, "Really?"

"Ah...Yeah. We don't hold grudges or anything like that. We take are of our problems so nothin' lingers."

"Except your injuries," she quipped.

"Look, I'm tryin' to be helpful here! You're not makin' it easy, you know!"

She laughed again, "I know, I know. Just wanted to give you a hard time." Her fiancée turned away from her in a huff. "You're right, I know. But...like I said, I just need a little space now." Suddenly, her eyes widened and she began to shiver uncontrollably.

"Akane? What's wrong?"

"I-I don't know! This...this weird feeling just came over me..."

Reflexively, Ranma stepped away, making sure his back was to the wall, "It ain't like that last 'feeling' you had, is it?"

"No...this is..." She couldn't come up with any words to describe it. But from the look in her eyes, Ranma could tell, she was terrified.

Downstairs, Kasumi was in no better condition. Soun, Genma and Nabiki rushed to her side, trying to determine what was wrong. "It's happening again, isn't it?" asked Nabiki.

Soun looked at his middle daughter, "What is?"

"She had this very vacant look in her face before dinner. She dropped a dish and nearly fell over. But she wouldn't tell me what was going on before..." Unexpectedly, Nabiki clutched her chest and fell over, trembling herself.

"Nabiki!" shouted Soun.

"I...I remember this..." Nabiki was able to articulate, "This horrible feeling...I've felt this before..."

Kasumi found the strength of will to stand herself up and she forced her way to the back yard. "I...I din't think it was possible..."

"Tendo! Do you have any idea what they're talking about?" inquired Genma. Soun shook his head, just as confused as his shape-changing friend.

Kasumi pointed to the small yard between their house and the dojo. Soun went to check on what she was pointing at, Soun went also, allowing Nabiki to lean on his shoulder. A lone, female figure stood just beyond the koi pond. Kasumi's face was unreadable. Genma and Nabiki were just as confused as before. Soun was in shock, but it was quickly replaced. A fire that had long, since died within him had flared, and his lips had curled upward, baring his teeth like a wild animal ready to maul its victim.

"Oh good," the woman said with a smile. "I'm glad I managed to catch you all at home." She pointed at the head of the household, "Soun, right? It's been a long time."

Soun growled, "Arame."

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----


	7. Chapter 7

In Nerima's new herbal remedy shop, After The Fall, Dr. Tofu undid the bandage that was on Mousse's head and applied the medicinal herbs he just acquired. The shop's owner, Autumn, gave this to him freely. As he did so, they relayed the story of their duel, her Amazon heritage and the quandary they found themselves in as members of opposing tribes now illegally engaged. Dr. Tofu had to shake his head. Why did these kids always have to get in such difficult situations? 

As the explanation went on, Autumn became more and more distant. Her feet, acting on their own it seemed, carried her over to the entryway and she gazed out into the neighborhood. Something was off.

"Hey! Is everything okay?" Dr. Tofu asked.

"...no," Autumn answered after a long pause. "There's a demon close by."

"Yeah. Akane, remember?" blurted Mousse. "We met her earlier."

Tofu did a double take, "Say what?"

Oops. Looks like Mousse gave away some information he shouldn't have. "Erm...maybe it would be better if they explained that to you themselves?"

"It's not her," went Autumn. "It's another one...one far more dangerous. I have to go!" Without another word, she leapt out into the coming night.

"WAIT!" without thinking, Mousse jumped to his feet and went after her.

"Where do you two think you're going?" blasted Dr. Tofu.

"Don't worry about it, doctor," said Mousse. "She's a demon hunter. And me? Well...we told you before about the uncanny knack Autumn and I have about certain things. I seem to have this uncanny knack for always wanting to help her in situations like this." At that, he ran off after her.

Dr. Tofu gathered his bag, walked out of the store, locking it up behind him. Left alone now, he wondered what he should do. His better judgment told him that he should go back to his clinic. Chances were good it'd be crowded with injured soon with the way they took off. In the end, though, he shrugged and took off after the Amazon couple. After all, no one else in that neighborhood listened to their better judgment, why should he?

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 7

"How did you get out of your prison, Arame?" growled Soun.

"Apparently, someone summoned me," Arame answered. "To tell the truth, I'm not exactly sure about all the details. But they don't really matter, do they? All that counts is I'm here now."

"What do you want?" demanded Kasumi.

"What I've always wanted!" went Arame. "I want to torment Moriko Tendo! I want to torture her slowly by taking away everything she cares for! I want to methodically strip away her very core until I break her. I want her to be a slumping mess, groveling at my feet begging me to finally put her out of her misery!" She looked at everyone gathered and asked with a pleasant smile, "So, where is she?"

"She's not here," said Kasumi.

"Pashaw, you're hiding her! Bring her out now. You don't want to make me cross, do you?

If looks could kill, Soun would've laid waste to Arame right then and there. "She is NOT HERE. If you want to find her, we could show you the cemetery where she's buried."

Arame became confused, "Buried? She's already dead? You're lying!"

"No, I'm not. Your final attack during your last battle did more damage to Moriko than I thought. It didn't happen immediately, but it took its toll over time and she died. You must be very proud of yourself now, knowing that my wife died because of you."

Arame fell to her knees, "No! It can't be!" It was Soun's turn to be confused. " She's dead...and it's my fault? I...I didn't get a chance to see her suffer. I wanted to see the life slowly draining from her eyes." Soun's confusion quickly left him, and the rage took over again. "But...if she's dead, then why do I feel her presence here still?" Arame looked intently at Kasumi, and at that, she understood, "You're her daughter?" She looked at Nabiki as well and stood up. "I see. Your mother's spirit is strong within you."

"That's quite the complement," said Nabiki, defiantly.

Arame's smile returned. "Well, since I can't torment her, I guess tormenting you is the next best thing." Using her power, Arame levitated off of the ground. She focused her energy into her hand and pointed it at the Tendo family. At the last second she spun around and fired, destroying the dojo. Soun stared blankly, seeing his life work burning to the ground before his eyes.

At the sound of the destruction, Akane and Ranma joined the rest of their families. Akane joined her father in his reaction. Her promised inheritance was gone. "What happened?" She shouted. "Who did this?"

"It's her," Nabiki said through her clenched teeth. "Arame!"

Arame studied Akane carefully. The feeling wasn't as strong as it was within Kasumi and Nabiki, but it was there. "Oh! Another of Moriko's daughters? This just gets better!" She gathered her energy and fired again, this time aiming for their house. Upon impact, it exploded, appearing to envelop the entire family as well. "Oh no...I hope some of them survive. I just hate it when I go overboard like that."

When the smoke cleared, much to Arame's surprise, not only did all of the house's occupants survive her assault, but the house did as well. Kasumi stood in front of everyone, with a bright yellow glow about her and her hands outstretched. There was a similar yellowish glow that surrounded the entire house. "I won't let any harm come upon this house, or those who live in it!" she exclaimed.

"Impressive," went Arame. "I would never expect such power from a half-demon. I wonder, though, how long can you keep it up?"

That was all Soun could stand. Seeing his dojo burning into ash and the repeated attacks on his house and family caused him to snap. A hidden power, which he only tapped to do his demon head intimidation technique, had forced its way to the surface. He rocketed himself into the air, leaving a trail of white-hot ki in his wake. With more fury than he had every shown in his life, he struck, catching Arame with a punch to her jaw, which he followed with a knee to her stomach. With her doubled over in pain, he brought his fists together and clubbed her in the back of the head, forcing her to crash back to the ground. With her wide open, he focused his intense power and fired them down on her, catching her in an explosion that rivaled the one that decimated the dojo.

He landed in front of the smoldering crater he created and sneered, "I've been waiting to do that for nearly twenty years...and it FELT GOOD."

Everyone stood at the doorway, mouths agape at the unbelievable feat the usually mild Soun Tendo just performed. "Wow," said Akane. "Dad, that was incredible!"

"No kidding," said Ranma, also impressed. "Hey, wait a minute! If you could do that; with how much you say you wanna get rid of the old pervert, how come you never used those powers on him?"

Soun faltered, "Well...er, you see, these powers are very taxing on me. I never use them unless the situation is extraordinarily dire."

"In other words," interjected Nabiki, "he was so scared of him, he didn't think to use them."

Soun blushed, "Eh...yeah."

A powerful wind picked up out of nowhere and cleared the smoke away. Arame, using her power to clear a path walked out of the crater, clearly injured from Soun's attack. Soun glared at her, wordlessly daring her to make a move. Just behind him Ranma stepped up to back him up if he needed it. "Damn," Arame cursed to herself. "I didn't think they'd be this much trouble without Moriko to defend them. I guess I'll just have to change tactics. I just need a way out of this."

On cue, the energies around Soun dissipated and he collapsed to the ground, clutching his chest. "Father!" shouted Kasumi, as she rushed to his side. Ranma ran to his side as well, in case she tried anything.

And try something, she did. Since she couldn't take them all at once, she would pick them off one at a time, starting with the weakest one first. Teleporting behind the fallen patriarch, Arame grabbed Akane by the scruff of her shirt and disappeared in a ball of light.

"NO!" yelled Nabiki, "She took Akane!"

"AKANE! NO!" Soun jumped back to his feet, but fell to the ground again.

"Father!" Kasumi took him by the shoulders and helped him so he sat upright.

"I don't remember these powers draining me this much this fast. Heh...my old body must not be able to handle them like it used to."

Kasumi and Genma helped the weakened Soun back into the house. Ranma stood in the middle of the battlefield staring off in the growing night. As Nabiki walked over to him, he said, "It's like we're stuck in some stupid story, playing out the same script over and over again."

Nabiki glanced over to the smoldering pile of rubble that used to be the family dojo. "Not totally,"

"Still, I should've known something like this would've happened again. I should've stood by her..."

"You know what, Saotome? For once, it isn't your fault. This is our mess that we managed to draw you into. You shouldn't blame yourself for what happened to her."

"Well, in the end, I guess that doesn't matter, does it?" Ranma jumped onto the fence that separated the Tendo property from the street.

"What are you doing?" asked Nabiki.

"What do you think? I'm gonna go get Akane back!" He got himself ready to leap out into the night.

Nabiki raised an eyebrow, "And I suppose you know exactly where to go, right?"

Ranma stayed in his 'got himself ready to leap out into the night' position as he considered Nabiki's inquiry. "Erm..."

"Before you start doing that super jumping thing you do all over creation, maybe you want to have an idea where you're going first. Arame is an enemy of our family. We seem to be able to detect her when she's nearby, so you should take me or Kasumi with you."

Ranma dropped back to ground level, "I couldn't..."

"Why not? We aren't exactly helpless little girls, you know. You've seen what Kasumi can do. And you have absolutely no idea what I'm capable of." That was true. Unfortunately, Nabiki herself didn't know what she was capable of doing, as she never used any powers related to her demonic nature. 'Would certainly be a hell of a time to find such a thing out,' she thought to herself.

Even if they were stronger than he knew, Ranma didn't relish the idea of grabbing Kasumi or Nabiki and rushing headlong into danger. They had no martial art training and there was no telling what the limitations were to their power. They could fade at anytime, like Mr. Tendo did, leaving him to fend for himself, and them. He had to come up with a good excuse and, fortunately for him, one wasn't far away, "You two need to stay here, just in case she comes back. The house needs to be protected...so does your father."

"Then how, exactly, will you be able to find Arame and Akane?" inquired Nabiki.

Ranma thought a little, "Well, if this IS some stupid story, this would be the part where help comes! They'll say they can find them and that they'll help me face her in our final showdown."

Nabiki glared at him, "This is not the time for jokes."

"RANMA!"

Right then, Mousse, Autumn and Dr. Tofu entered the property. Ranma and Nabiki stared at them incredulously. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, however, Ranma shrugged and trotted over to them.

Dr. Tofu went slowly towards the backyard, staring in disbelief at the demolished dojo. "Ranma...what happened?"

"We had a run-in with an old family friend of the Tendo's," he answered.

"Is everyone alright?"

"Mr. Tendo's could use some help. He's in the house." Dr. Tofu nodded and went inside.

Autumn went up to the wreckage of the dojo as well and studied it. "A demon did this, am I right?"

"Yes, you are," said Nabiki. "She has a vendetta against my family."

Autumn looked at her, "And who might you be?"

"The name's Nabiki Tendo."

"Tendo? You're related to Akane, right?"

"Yes, she's my sister."

"Thought so. You two have similar demonic auras about you."

"Hey! That's right! You're able to feel that sort of stuff too, aren't ya?" Ranma asked, getting his hopes up.

"Yeah. Why?"

Nabiki's jaw fell open.

"That demon took Akane away," Ranma told her. "I need your help to find them so I can get Akane back! Can you?"

Autumn's eyes got big. "This is it...this is the real thing! I'm finally going to take down my first, full demon! I'll do it! Let's GO!" With a big grin on her face, Autumn ran off into the night.

Ranma got very concerned look on his face all of a sudden. "Wait...your FIRST? Waitaminute!" Mousse simply shrugged and ran after them.

Nabiki stood there with the incredulous look still on her face. She couldn't believe it, but everything that Ranma said would happen happened. Could it be? Could they really be part of some demented author's bad story? "Feh...yeah right. Who would want to read about our twisted lives anyway?" Shaking her head, she went back into the house to check on her father.

----+----+----+----+----

Arame was very pleased with her new surroundings. Just below an area high school...Furinkan, if she read properly, there was a small room that gave off a very powerful spiritual "smell". She had heard that some high schools have girls that create a magic club and foolishly mettle with demonic incantations and magic. Furinkan must've had one at one time but this one looked to have been long abandoned...save a fresh summoning circle on the floor.

What no one realized, though, was that beyond this small room was a larger cavern, shielded from mortal view by a secret door. It took a very precise magical frequency to open it up, but it was child's play for one like her. From the look of the larger cavern, it appeared a long time ago, before the high school magic clubs...before the high school itself, a real coven used to congregate here to practice their dark arts. Perhaps it was the remnants of the dark magics here that called on the students to join those clubs and dabble in forces they didn't understand. It didn't matter. For now, it was perfect for Arame's needs.

She looked upwards on the far wall of the deepest part of the cavern. There, Akane was shackled on what appeared to be an alter in standard 'damsel in distress' fashion. It wasn't old fashioned. Rather, it was homage to the classic kidnapping schemes. But now that Arame had the youngest child of her most hated enemy, she had to figure out what to do with her.

Just then, Akane woke up from an unexplained unconsciousness. Taking stock of her situation, two words immediately came to mind. 'Not again!'

"So, you're awake," said Arame. "I'm so sorry for the rough ride here. Your folks hurt me pretty bad and my escape didn't go as smoothly as it normally would."

"What do you want?" demanded Akane.

"To torture you, to strip away at your core, yadda yadda yadda. Weren't you there when I answered that question the first time?" answered Arame, slightly annoyed. "Oh...that's right! You appeared after all that. Oh well, you get the idea." She smiled at Akane.

Akane fought against her bindings, but they were too strong for her to break. "I wouldn't look so smug if I were you."

"Oh? And why's that?"

"I don't know about the others, but Ranma will come for me."

Arame tilted her head to the side, "Ranma? And who's Ranma?"

"He's my fiancée. He may be completely human, but he's very strong and he's dealt with demons before. He'll stop at nothing to rescue me, just you wait!"

"Oh...you must mean that cute young man with the pigtail..." That was when Arame knew what she was going to do with Akane. But first, she had some preparation to take care of. "Oh boys!" Obeying her call, two unidentifiable figures stepped out of the shadows. Even though she couldn't make out who they were, Akane felt there was something familiar about them. "We're going to have a visitor in a moment," Arame informed them. "I do want you to let him in...just don't make it easy for him." With their orders given, they bowed to her and disappeared back into the shadows. Arame rubbed her hands together and looked at Akane, "Just you wait. This is going to be so much fun!"

----+----

"+Tsk+ I should've known they would be here." Ranma mumbled.

Following the powerful demonic aura to its source, Autumn, Mousse and Ranma arrived at the front gates of Furinkan High School. With the spirit of darkness and the cloak of night shrouding it, the place had a very ominous feel to it. Bravely, the three martial artists stepped onto the property, ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead.

Instead of going into the main building, Autumn went for the back where the soccer field was. Beyond the field, they came upon an old storage room that looked to have been abandoned. It was a place even Ranma wouldn't have tread normally.

"Dark, spooky, covered in cobwebs...sounds like your classic demon's lair, alright," said Autumn.

Mousse nudged Ranma, "At least it's not in your principal's office. I hear that guy is a major league loon and made his office to match."

Ranma nodded. That would've been much creepier. Didn't do much to make this easier, though. Taking a deep breath, Ranma steeled himself and opened the door, "Alright. Let's go."

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----


	8. Chapter 8

Finally!

After what seemed like years of searching, he had finally found his quarry.

Under the cover of darkness, a shadowy figure crept up to a nondescript house. He checked the front door, noting it was locked in place. 'That figured', the shadowy intruder thought to himself. 'After all, there's no telling what kind of people will just waltz into your homes these days.' He smiled at the irony of his thought. Riffling through his pocket, he procured a small, metallic object, which reflected the soft moonlight that peeked through the oncoming clouds.

Forcing the object into the door's lock, he managed to force it open and made his way inside. With a smile and a twirl of what appeared to be an umbrella, he entered the house. With the hour being so late, one would assume his prey would be asleep, along with the rest of the house's occupants. It would be so easy to strike him down in that state, but that wasn't what he wanted. The intruder may have been many things, but he wasn't a coward who would attack an enemy in his sleep. No, he would challenge his foe to an honorable duel, where there would be no excuses...where there would be no question who the better man was when it was all said and done.

He opened one of the interior doors he came upon. It lead into a bedroom, but no one was in it. Must've been a guest room. Closing the door, he continued snooping through the house, thinking about what he was going to do with his foe. He relished the thought of pounding the crap out of his foe in front of his friends and family. His hated enemy had caused him a great embarrassment and he was damn sure going to return the favor ten-fold.

Opening up a second door. Another unoccupied bedroom. Strange. He closed the door and continued going through the house, his thoughts returning to the pain he was going to inflict upon his prey. It was true he wasn't able to defeat this foe in all of the times he challenged him before. But that was a long time ago. He had picked up many new tricks that he was sure his enemy would not be able to handle. Revenge would be sweet indeed.

He opened a third door. There appeared to be a two toned dog inside this one, but no human occupants. He cursed under his breath and closed the door. Heading back out to the main entrance, he took out a small flashlight and a piece of paper to check the address that was scribbled onto it, making sure it matched the address of the house. It did. It appeared his quarry had evaded him yet again.

In anger and frustration, he screamed out to the heavens, "WHERE ON EARTH ARE YOU NOW?"

A shoe flew out of nowhere and smacked him on the side of the head, "QUIET! WE'RE TRYING TO SLEEP!"

"Sorry..." he said sheepishly, rubbing the sore spot on his head. He balled up the piece of paper, dropped it onto the street and began walking. "Another minor setback. It doesn't matter how long it takes, I will find you and I will have my revenge...Ryouga Hibiki!"

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 8

Autumn and Mousse crept carefully into the old storage shack on Furinkan High's soccer field. They didn't know what dangers were awaiting them in the old, spooky structure, so they felt it prudent to proceed with caution. Unfortunately, no one thought to tell Ranma about such prudent measures. He burst in behind them and started tearing up the place, completely ruining their element of surprise.

Not even paying attention to the strange furnishings of the shack, or the arcane images plastered everywhere; the pigtailed martial artist tore down all of the bookshelves, uprooted the embedded racks and basically destroyed the place. "Dammit! Nothing's here! Where are they?" a frantic Ranma said.

"Well, wherever they are, I'm sure they know we're here now," went Mousse, glaring at him. "Along with the rest of the neighborhood."

"They're definitely here," Autumn informed them. "Their demonic auras are very strong." Looking around the trashed shack, she rested her gaze on a slab of rock that rested at a forty-five degree angle upon the wall farthest in. The trail of energy seemed to end there. Inspecting the slab itself, she noticed another arcane graphic upon it. "This seems to be a doorway to a cavern underneath the shed."

"Alright, now we're getting somewhere!" said Ranma. "Stand back, I'm gonna get it open."

"We can't just open it so easily," Autumn told him. "From the marking on the slab, it looks as though it takes a certain magical frequency to open it up. Unfortunately, from the way you trashed the place, it could take hours to find the scroll that has the proper spell."

"I got your magical frequency right here!" Ranma flared up his ki and focused it in his hands. Autumn quickly removed herself from in front of the door. "MOUKO TAKABISHA!" His attack had no trouble powering its way through the magical entrance.

Mousse nodded. "That's our Ranma. All the subtlety of a Mac Truck."

Not bothering to return Mousse's insult, Ranma stormed into the secret cave with reckless abandon, with Mousse and Autumn following closely behind. The passage was deeper than they had originally imagined, going hundreds of feet under the ground. The cavern it was connected to was massive, containing even more arcane artifacts like what was in the shed above. Autumn wondered if anyone knew these caves were under their school? Anyone who did had the potential to learn all sorts of ancient magic.

Ahead, they saw an opening to what appeared to be another cavern. The cave they were in was empty, besides the artifacts. If Akane were there, then she had to have been deeper within. Ranma marched onward to the opening, when a bright ball of light appeared in the middle of the cave and Arame materialized from it.

"There you are!" said Ranma. "Where's Akane?"

"No hellos? No good to see you agains? You're so rude," returned Arame, pretending to be hurt. "Well, you're such a cutie, I'll forgive you."

"Where is Akane?" Ranma repeated through clenched teeth, getting angrier by the second.

"Well, if you must know, she's in the cave behind me, in a very precarious situation." Arame raised her eyebrow, "Of course, you realize, I'm not going to make getting over there easy for you." Ranma adopted a defensive stance, causing Arame to shake her head, "No, no, no...I'm not going to fight you."

"Oh really?" asked Ranma. Arame shook her head again. Ranma wondered what she was up to but took the bait anyway. He wasn't going to allow Akane to remain in danger any longer than necessary. He started to run, but just as he passed Arame, Taro appeared and landed a punch on the jaw, knocking Ranma back to his previous position.

"No, I'm not going to fight you, but he will." She put her arm around Taro's shoulders and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I found the poor dear in a dumpster a few miles from here. Looked like he was in a pretty bad explosion too. I took him in and nursed him back to health with my...special tender loving care." She gave Taro a pat on the back, finished with, "You two play nice now," and disappeared in that ball of light.

"Oh, yes. We're going to have a whole lot of fun, aren't we, fem-boy?" Taro said menacingly. He jumped up into the air and extended his feet, intending to stomp Ranma's head into the ground. Ranma rolled out of the way of Taro's attack and sprang back to his feet, ready for the next attack. Taro didn't give him long to wait. He went at the pigtailed martial artist with a straight kick, which Ranma ducked. Taro flowed smoothly into a roundhouse with his other leg, Ranma dodged backward, allowing the kick to fly harmlessly in front of him. Taro stepped forward with another punch. Ranma wasn't set properly to do another evasive maneuver, so he blocked the punch. It didn't do much damage, but it still managed to push him back another few feet.

"Damn..." Ranma cursed, "I don't got time for this!"

"We'll take care of him for you, Ranma," Mousse said.

"Are you sure?" asked Ranma.

Mousse nodded, "You go on and get your fiancée. Let's go, Autumn!" Mousse and Autumn lunged at Taro, throwing various attacks his way. Nothing to seriously hurt him...yet; it was just enough to turn his attention away from Ranma so he could proceed to the next cave. Once Ranma was clear of them, Mousse got into a proper fighting stance. "Alright...let's do this!"

"Do you really think it's going to take two of us to beat him?" asked Autumn.

"Beat him?" repeated Mousse. "The last time we were in a serious fight, it took four of us to beat him. I'm just hoping the two of us will be able to fight him to a standstill."

"Him?" Autumn gave Taro a once over, "You got to be kidding! I could probably beat him by myself."

"Maybe," Mousse conjectured, "if he were to stay human." Autumn gave him a confused look. Mousse was surprised. As an Amazon, he was sure Autumn knew about Jusenkyo. Perhaps, since she was from a tribe further removed from the cursed springs than his, she probably hadn't been indoctrinated to its presence. Unfortunately, he didn't have the time to explain those things to her then.

Even more unfortunate was he didn't have to explain. Just as he feared, Taro procured a canteen, seemingly out of nowhere. "Heh heh," he went, as he elevated the canteen above his head and emptied the contents on top of himself. The man they were facing had disappeared, replaced with what looked like a gigantic bull with wings, tentacles and a snake tail.

Autumn nearly fell backwards trying to look up at him. "He's cursed! And what a cursed form he has!"

Ah, so she did know about the cursed springs. That would make things a lot easier when time came to reveal his own curse to her. All they had to do was survive this fight first.

----+----

Ranma heard Autumn exclaim, "He's cursed!" That meant Taro pulled out his alternate form already. He wanted to go back and help his comrades, but he had his own mission to complete. He just hoped they were good enough to face him and live to tell about it. As it was, they were doing what Mousse said they would do. Ranma wasn't that far from the second cave. Once he got Akane free, they could all gang up, beat Taro and get the hell out of there.

Just before he reached the passage to the second cave, though, Arame reappeared in her ball of light. "Hey! You're cheating!" Arame scolded.

"You gotta be kidding!" said Ranma.

"Humph, fortunately, I have another playmate who would like to go a few rounds with you." Arame stepped aside to reveal Kuno, who was standing in the way of the passage.

Ranma almost fell over laughing. "Kuno?"

"Oh yes!" answered Arame with a smile. "He's such a gallant man. He 'rescued' me from a bunch of fiends who were going to abduct me and have their way with me. I was disappointed at first, but I must say, he's got the energy of three men himself. And he REALLY knows how to show a woman a good time." She sighed contently, "Our time together was very...revitalizing."

"Yeah, whatever," went Ranma. "But I hate to tell ya, you made a very bad pick for a guardian. Taro may have been a good find, but Kuno ain't gonna stop me!" Ranma opened up fully, knowing Kuno couldn't match him at full speed. A quick bounce off of an adjoining wall and Ranma would be behind them before they even noticed he moved.

However, before he could even get to the wall for the ricochet, Kuno jumped in front of him and slammed his bokken into Ranma's stomach. With the wind knocked out of him, Ranma took a couple of steps back and fell to one knee, gasping for air.

"I could tell that his skills left much to be desired if I wanted him to help me. So, I gave him a couple of 'enhancements'." She gave Ranma a wave, "Enjoy." With that, she disappeared again.

Kuno favored Ranma with a smile that promised nothing good. "Finally, Ranma Saotome! Finally, I have the strength in which to defeat you! I shall make you pay for all of the humiliations which you have bestowed upon me!"

Ranma rose to his feet and stood defiantly, "How in the world could you serve that witch? She's gonna kill Akane!"

"She will do no such thing!" Kuno snapped. "She gave me her word that Akane Tendo will be mine once this is all over with. Such a gross untruth would never leave the lips of so glorious an angel."

"Hate to break it to ya, Kuno, but that woman is the exact opposite of an angel!"

"It matters not," said Kuno. "Should she break our bond and try to harm Akane Tendo, I shall deal with her myself. For now, however, I shall have the pleasure of finally dispatching you!"

"We'll see about that!" With Kuno's newfound speed, there was no way Ranma could win if he held anything back. So, with all he had, he attacked. To the untrained eye, all that would've been seen was a blur with the attacks and counter attacks the two teens threw at each other. Apparently, though, Kuno wasn't used to keeping that pace up for long. He left his head wide open and was going to make Kuno pay dearly for his interference. Unfortunately, Ranma's attempt to exploit Kuno's open spot left his midsection exposed to another attack. Taking his chance to strike, Kuno hit his mark yet again, at the same time Ranma's punch landed. This resulted in both being knocked to the ground.

Ranma clutched his ribs, writhing in pain. It just wasn't right. Kuno wasn't supposed to be that good. Those were some damned good enhancements Arame gave him. At this rate he was going to be the one that needed rescuing. He painfully picked himself off of the ground again and tried to shake the pain off. At least Kuno looked like he wasn't in such good shape himself. He was sweating profusely and breathing heavily. It occurred to Ranma that it was probably true that Kuno wasn't used to keeping up that pace. He got the ability to go that fast artificially, so he wasn't properly conditioned to use that ability.

Ranma smiled. He had the advantage. All he needed to do was tire Kuno out and the fight was his. Hopefully, he could do so without taking much more damage.

Slowly, Kuno picked himself off of the ground as well. His new abilities were everything he thought they would be. Unfortunately, they had a fatal flaw. He cursed himself; he was so excited to gain those new abilities, he neglected that one basic, fundamental fact. Without the proper conditioning to use his new abilities, they would wear him out quickly. Looking at the smile on Saotome's face, it seemed he was aware of this fact as well. Kuno had to admit; Ranma was pretty perceptive...for a cretin.

Kuno still had a few tricks up his sleeve, but if simply using his speed made him this tired, using his new, ultimate attack would sap his energy totally. He had one, maybe two shots at Ranma with his new attack. He needed to make them count. Kuno knew he was told to hurt Ranma some, then let him pass. But this was the best chance he had at defeating the knave. He couldn't let that chance pass.

"You know, Saotome...I have always said that the vengeance of heaven was slow but sure," said Kuno. "But no more...heaven has sent me its angel, and she, in turn, has given me the tools to impart that vengeance upon you!"

"What in the world are you babbling about?" Ranma panted.

"This!" Kuno raised his bokken and even though they were a hundred or so feet below the ground, lightening began to crackle around him. "Now, Saotome! Now, you shall finally feel…THE WRATH OF HEAVEN!" He swung the bokken down like a guillotine and the lightening completely enveloped Kuno and Ranma. The blinding light of Kuno's awesome attack even brought a temporary halt to the other battle, which took place mere feet away from them. When the light dissipated, Kuno was still standing in his attack position, with residual electricity crackling about him. Ranma, on the other hand, lay in front of him in a smoking heap.

'She wasn't kidding about those 'enhancements',' Ranma thought. That attack was absolutely incredible...it was unbelievable that someone like Kuno could use such a thing. This was it. The jolt of electricity looked to have paralyzed him temporarily. There was nothing Ranma could do at this point, but wait for the final blow to come. Even with this new power, to lose to someone like Kuno was an embarrassment.

A few seconds passed, but the final blow Ranma had expected never came. Regaining his motor functions, he chanced a look up at his opponent. Kuno was still in the same pose as when he launched his last attack. Getting back up to his feet, Ranma examined Kuno. He gave the would-be samurai an interrogatory poke, to which Kuno fell over. Looked like that attack was an all or nothing shot that drained him of the last of his strength. Ranma wiped his brow and let out a sigh of relief. Even with his new powers, Kuno just wasn't a match for him. Still, that fight took a lot out of him. He entered the second cavern, hoping he had enough to defeat Arame and save his fiancée.

----+----

It looked as though the fight was going to be every bit as difficult as Mousse said it would be. They went all out after him, with their most lethal weapons and attacks. Everything bounced off of Taro's hide. Even the swords and spears they would acquire from their robes just broke when they tried to stab him. It wasn't even as if they had an easy time getting through his defenses. For such a large mass, Taro was surprisingly fast. The dodging, patient waiting for openings, just to strike with attacks that didn't work was quickly becoming frustrating.

There were certain rules one had to abide by when one became a demon hunter in Autumn's tribe. The powerful attacks you would use on demonic adversaries weren't to be used on regular people. Well...on living mortals, as Taro was anything but 'regular'. Still, with how the battle was going, Autumn mentally said 'screw the rules' and opened up her other arsenal.

She dug into her robes and pulled out a pair of metallic claws, attaching them to her hands. Autumn, then, channeled her ki into them, causing them to glow. "FURY SLASH!" She rushed Taro with her hands extended, her claws leaving an energy trail as she moved. Taro managed to avoid the brunt of her attack, however, it did catch him on the side of his abdomen, causing him to yowl in pain. She came back for another attack, but Taro flapped his wings mightily to avoid her.

"Damn! He can fly?"

"I guess I should've warned you about that," said Mousse.

"Doesn't make any difference anyway...it doesn't look like my last strike did much more than superficial damage. I have an attack that may work, but with how agile he is, I doubt I'd be able to hit him with it now."

Mousse gave her thumbs up, "Well, if you need him tied down, then I have just the technique."

Autumn smiled, remembering the technique he used to defeat her before. "Alright, let's do it!"

It was then that Kuno launched his 'wrath of heaven' attack, striking Ranma down and blinding the others that were in the cavern. With how the combatants were set up, Taro had his back to the flash of light. Since it had less of an effect on him, he was the first to recover. As the hearing in his cursed form was enhanced, he overheard their plan. Mousse seemed to be the key to pulling it off, so he had to go first. Swooping downward, Taro extended his massive fist, intending to literally knock Mousse into next week.

Her vision coming back into focus, Autumn saw Taro's dive-bombing attack on Mousse. "NOO!" Acting on instinct, Autumn leapt and shoved the myopic martial artist out of Taro's path.

Mousse's sight came back just in time to see Autumn take the full force of Taro's punch. She flew back towards the main entrance, bouncing off of the ground once and crashing into the wall. Mousse grabbed the hen he kept in his robes, took the eggs it laid and threw them at the massive beast. With Taro blinded yet again, from Mousse's hen's egg bomb attack, he went to check on Autumn. "Are you okay?"

"Good enough to finish this," she said. She stood back up, but Mousse could tell she was in very bad shape. Her legs were shaky and she was struggling to breathe. She would need to see a doctor soon. She gave him a hard look, "Are you ready?"

Mousse knew her Amazon pride wouldn't allow her to stop until the battle was over, so he didn't even try to argue with her. "I'm ready," he said.

"Do it!"

With the benefit of having Taro still blinded, Mousse charged and let loose every bit of rope and chain he had in his massive robe. The daggered ends embedded themselves all over the cavern, effectively snaring Taro like a fly in a spider web. "He's all yours!"

Autumn took a quick glance at her hands and noticed her claws were gone. Apparently, they didn't survive Taro's last strike. It wouldn't matter, however. Straining to push the searing pain she felt in her chest out of her mind, her ki blazed to life about her. She launched herself at him using the only weapon she felt would be effective against him...her ki enveloped body in a move she called the Lunar Rave. With Taro unable to move, she struck him right between the eyes. Landing behind him, she turned to see how her attack fared. To her dismay, Taro appeared to be shaking off its effects. Fortunately, even he, in that form, couldn't easily absorb a strike like that. His head slumped over as he lost consciousness.

"Finally..." Assured of victory, Autumn collapsed to the ground, losing consciousness as well.

Mousse knelt down beside her prone form and gently placed her head on his lap. 'Incredible...such power she possesses. She could've beaten me easily if she used them in our duel. I can tell there's a lot I could potentially learn from you.' As he thought about the possibilities, another important fact crossed his mind. She sacrificed herself, taking Taro's blow in his place. Shampoo never did that for him. Quite the contrary, she would do her best to hinder him so he could take more punishment.

Carefully, Mousse picked her up and started back for the surface. After all that she did for him, he would be damned before he allowed her to die in a place like that. "We've done our part, Ranma. The rest is up to you now. Good hunting."

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----


	9. Chapter 9

"How is he," Nabiki asked about her father. Even though the confrontation between Soun and Arame had been completely and surprisingly one sided in Soun's favor, it left him completely drained. However, as the hours passed, it looked as though he was getting better. He was already sitting upright again, and the pain he looked to have been seemed to have stopped. However, Nabiki would only feel better when she got the word from Dr. Tofu.

The good doctor was giving Soun one last check before he gave the family his final word. He was still amazed at the story they had to tell about the legacy the Tendo matriarch left to her daughters. It left him with many things to think about, most of which had to do with the eldest Tendo daughter. After finishing his check-up, Tofu stood up, "Well, I've done everything I could. He seems to have recovered from his ordeal, but his ki is still very weak. He'll have to take it easy for the next few days. Other than that, he should be fine."

"That's good." In an uncharacteristic show of genuine emotion, Nabiki sat down by her father and gave him a hug. "I must say, daddy, that was incredible, what you did with Arame."

With a smile, Soun returned the hug. "Thanks, Nabiki. I must admit to being a little surprised as well. I guess this old horse still has a few laps in him."

"If the old horse knows what's good for him," interjected the doctor, "he'll take those laps with a sprint. You may not recover if you go full gallop again."

"Not to worry, doctor. I don't plan on doing that again," said Soun with a laugh.

"Good," Dr. Tofu said with a nod.

With his physical completed, Soun got up and walked over to his life-long friend, who was staring out in the waning night. He didn't have to look Genma in the eyes to know how concerned he was about the battle that raged elsewhere in town. Soun shared in his concern. "Ranma really is a remarkable boy," Soun said, breaking the uneasy silence.

Genma nodded, "He sure is. Still, I have to wonder if his strength will be enough to beat Arame and bring Akane back?"

"If anyone can do it, he can. Did you know that, just before we told Akane about her true heritage, Kasumi, Nabiki and I caught them in the front of the house, admitting their love for each other?"

The look on Genma's face changed from concern to elation, "Really?"

Soun smiled and nodded. "I know his love for her rivals my own. He will do everything in his power to save her, and then some. I have faith in him. He'll bring my little girl back safely, you'll see."

Genma beamed with pride, "I wouldn't expect anything less from the boy." He nudged his friend in the ribs with his elbows, "So, what do you say we go plan a wedding?"

Soun's smile became a mischievous grin, "Sounds good!"

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Chapter 9

Cautiously, Ranma entered the interior cavern. He couldn't afford to be reckless anymore, with how much he was beaten up. And he still had Arame to deal with, probably the most powerful being he'd ever had to face. There had to be no more major screw-ups, otherwise he...or worse, Akane, wouldn't make it out of this alive.

He took stock of his new surroundings. Cavern? It looked more like a dungeon. While the preceding cave had all sorts of arcane scrolls, symbols and such, this one was full of binding apparatuses and torture devices. While some were the standard racks and chains to hold up victims for flogging, there were some really scary looking ones that Ranma never saw before. He shuddered to think what they could've been used for.

In approximately the middle of the large room, he spotted Akane bound on what looked like a giant alter. And at the base of the alter, stood Arame.

"Akane! Are you alright?" called Ranma.

"Yes, I'm fine," she said. "She hasn't done anything to me yet."

"And she won't either. Don't worry, I'll get you down from there."

"Be careful!"

So far, nothing happened. There were no traps springing, no more 'playmates' popping up between them. It looked like he was finally going to get his shot at her. Sure there was nothing else; Ranma strode deeper into the cavern. He had a stern looking on his face, denoting the seething anger he felt, not to mention to mask the incredible pain he felt from his run-in with a supercharged Kuno. He couldn't let Arame know how much he was hurting, else she would home in on his weak spots and overwhelm him right off the bat.

For her part, Arame couldn't help but stare at Ranma as he walked in. She licked her lips like a hungry beast ready to devour a large meal. "There you are, my boy. I was wondering what took you so long."

"I told you Kuno wasn't the smartest choice for a guardian," Ranma said.

"Actually, I made the perfect choice. I didn't want him to keep you out. I just wanted him to rough you up a bit before he let you in. And by the looks of it, he did his job perfectly." She licked her lips again, "You really are a sight to behold. The messy hair, the broad shoulders, the heaving chest...and I can just imagine that sweat soaked body. I must say, it's all very...stimulating." Well, gee, when she put it that way, Akane had to agree. She suddenly became "stimulated" as well, but dammit, that wasn't the proper time for that sort of thing. "Tell you what, I'll make you a deal."

Ranma raised an eyebrow, "What sort of deal?"

"I'll let her go if you renounce your engagement and come away with me. I promise, it'll be a whole lot of fun. Certainly will be more fun than a fight."

"Forget it!" he spat.

"Y-you're turning me down? For HER?" Arame looked up at Akane, "You certainly have lousy taste in women. I mean, she's certainly isn't what I would call cute."

Ranma shrugged, "Yeah, I know that."

"HEY!" shouted Akane. "ARE YOU GOING TO RESCUE ME? OR ARE YOU GOING TO STAND THERE INSULTING ME WITH HER?"

He shrugged again, "Can't I do both?"

"How about this, then," Arame continued, "If you come away with me, not only will I let her go, but I promise to leave the rest of her family alone. What do you say?"

"Hell no. I don't care how cute Akane is...or ain't. I love her and I'm not gonna betray her, even if doing so saves her life. Make no mistake, though. She WILL be going free, and you WON'T be bothering the other Tendos." Ranma got into a fighting stance and ended, "But it's gonna happen MY way!"

Arame shook her head, "If that's the way you want it. Such a waste, though..." Bringing her hand up, she fired an energy blast at Ranma. He managed to jump out of its path, but he did so slower than usual. With the shots he took from his previous battle, the sudden moves he had to make in this confrontation promised to be painful to pull off. He would have to get in closer. She fired another energy blast and instead of dodging again, Ranma broke through the rocky ground beneath him, dug up a large slab of stone and threw it at the oncoming blast. When the two connected, it exploded, shielding him from her view.

When the smoke cleared, Ranma was gone. Arame looked around the room, frantically, "That blast wasn't powerful enough to vaporize him! Where did he go?"

"Behind you!" Arame turned around and came face to face with the pigtailed martial artist. Now, Ranma usually wasn't one for hitting women. Then again, this 'woman' was really a demon. Besides that, she dared to threaten Akane's life. Woman or not, that was not something Ranma was going to tolerate. With no hesitation, he punched her in the jaw. The punch caught Arame off guard and it caused her to stagger back. "You don't go down easy, huh? Fine with me! KATCHU TENSHIN AMAGURI-KEN"

Ranma let loose a furious barrage of, at least, a hundred punches a second. Arame, however, got over the shock of Ranma's sudden move and quick strike. With her bearings back, she managed to avoid every one of his punches. With a smile, she said, "You're right, I don't go down easy. Not in a fight, at least." With little effort, she danced around his punches and caught him in the stomach with an energy charged open palm strike that threw him backwards, crashing into the base of the alter.

Ranma clutched his stomach, unable to even scream at the intense pain. 'She can avoid my chestnut fist,' Ranma managed to articulate in his head. 'Should've figured she would be able to.' Slowly, he pushed himself back to his feet and got battle ready.

"You're every bit as amazing as I imagined," said Arame. "Your speed, your strength and especially that stamina of yours. We could've put that to so much better use. But, alas..." She flew back and fired another energy blast at him.

Again, he was able to roll out of the way, baring the pain. 'Well, she likes throwing those blasts around, let's see how she likes it!' Once he set himself upright, he shot back at her with his Mouko Takabisha attack. Once more, she was caught off guard by his abilities. This time, however, she managed to get over her shock and glide out of the way before his attack struck her.

"My, my...you are full of surprises, aren't you?" went Arame. "You command more power than I gave you credit for. I guess I'll have to start taking you more seriously."

His eyes widened. She wasn't fighting seriously yet? In that case, he was seriously screwed...and not in the good way either. What was their left for him to do? He did have one major attack left in his arsenal, but to do that, he'd have to get her mad and exuding an extremely hot aura. So far, she's been cool and collected through the whole thing. He could probably generate the hot ki if needed, but he doubted he could generate enough to cause a light breeze with his attack. She already proved too fast for his other attacks. What could he do?

He looked at his hands. His fastest attack was the chestnut fist, but she danced around that already. There had to be a way he could make it go faster. He looked back at Arame, in particular, her hands, which she used to fire, her energy blasts so liberally. Something clicked in Ranma's mind. He may not have been able to make his hands actually move any faster, but with a little alteration in the attack...it could work.

"Come on, my boy!" taunted Arame. "Don't stop now. This was just getting interesting. Don't tell me you don't have any more tricks to show me."

"Okay then, lady! You asked for it! KATCHU TENSHIN AMAGURI-KEN"

"Oh, please! Not this attack again. I already showed you, it's usele-"

-WHAP!-

"WHAT?" The shock returned to Arame's features. Not only did Ranma manage to hit her with the attack this time, but he hadn't moved from his previous position. Somehow, he managed to hit her from long range. "I don't know how you managed to do it, but don't think that one lucky shot will win this!"

-WHAP!-

-WHAP!-

-WHAP!-

-WHAP!-

-WHAP!-

-WHAP!-

A smile crept on Ranma's face. It was working. At the full extension of every punch, he fired a ki blast at her. With the speed of his chestnut fist on top of the speed of his ki blasts, the strikes were almost instant, leaving her no time to dodge. The ki blasts themselves were only strong enough to sting her as he tried it out, but upon seeing its success, he poured more of his battle energy into it. The strength of the attacks became more than she could bear, and she started backpedaling, until she had her back to the wall.

Ranma didn't let up. He continued bombarding her with hundreds of ki blasts per second. She took so much of a pounding that she actually went through the wall, a painful feat, as there was nothing behind the wall but miles and miles of rock. A thick cloud of dust and smoke covered her due to the incinerating rock wall and the mini explosions caused by the torrent of ki blasts; still, Ranma persisted. He persisted through the immense strain put on his body by the pain he endured, and through the rapid energy depletion of using his chestnut fist and a ki attack. His knees became shaky and he found it increasingly difficult to keep his eyes open, but he had to milk this opening for all it was worth. He doubted he would get another shot.

Finally, the pace was just too much for him to keep up. Panting heavily, he dropped his hands to his sides. He was completely spent, but it looked like the effort was worth it. The thick smoke that covered the hole she made was slowly dissipating, revealing a pile of rubble where her body should've been. Had he got her? Was the fight really over? If it were any other opponent, there would be no question, but with a being such as her, he couldn't be sure. So, for good measure, "MOUKO TAKABISHA!"

Taxing himself farther than he ever had, his full ki blast landed, nearly destroying the entire wall of the massive cavern. Ranma fell forward, teetering on unconsciousness. He had given everything he had and then some. After an unmerciful attack like that, it had to be over. Once again, when the smoke cleared, the mere pile of rubble became a mountain. Ranma watched the mountain as best as he could from his prone position to see if there was any movement among the rocks indicating her survival. There wasn't.

"Ranma! You did it!" cheered Akane.

Ranma still wasn't completely convinced. However, he hoped he, at least, bought them enough time to make their escape. "Hang on, Akane," he said, dragging himself to his feet, "I'll get you down from there."

"Hang on, he says," went Akane. "Like I have much choice..." Ranma got to the base of the alter and looked up. Under normal circumstances, it would be nothing for him to jump up there. He was so beat up, though, he doubted he could've made it half way. Where was Mousse or that Autumn girl when he needed them? Oh well, nothing left to do now, but climb.

Suddenly, a flash of light erupted from the mountain of rubble, blowing many of the rocks away. An object shot out of the opening in the rocks and landed a few feet in front of them. The object in question was Arame. Her clothes, what little there was to start with, were in tatters; her body was badly bruised and she was bleeding from various cuts. She was hurt; unfortunately, just not hurt enough.

The playfulness apparent in her eyes, even in the heat of battle was gone. This human managed to hurt and humiliate her. She wanted blood. In less time than it took to blink, she was on top of Ranma, landing a punch to his stomach, doubling him over, causing him to cough up blood. She followed up with a rising kick to his face, propelling him into the wall opposite of where she was buried.

"RANMA!" This wasn't good. Arame was slowly stalking over to Ranma, with another energy ball ready to be fired. Akane could tell that Ranma was still conscious, but he wasn't moving. If something wasn't done, quickly, he was going to die right then and there. "Arame, stop!" She did, looking up at Akane. "I'm the one you're supposed to be torturing, right? It's my family you have your vendetta against. You've won already...Do to me what you will, just leave him alone!"

Arame gave her a cold, sinister smile, "You're right. I do want to torture you. Now tell me, is there anything that could torture you more than seeing the man you love killed right before your eyes, with you helpless to do anything about it?"

Arame laughed cruelly, but Akane didn't hear it. At that moment, everything escaped Akane's perception outside of the ball of energy that was just fired from Arame's hand, heading for her helpless fiancée. Their entire life together flashed before her eyes: the first time they met, her finding out about his curse; all of the times they fought for each other; all of the times they fought against each other; the engagement, the breaks in the engagement and their reforms; everything down to the last few days where they finally admitted they loved each other. Was this how it was all going to end? After all they had been through, after all the hardship it took for them to finally and openly give their hearts to each other, were they really going to have everything taken away from them in that instant?

"NOOOOOOO!" Something deep inside Akane came to the surface. Her demonic aura, which was said to have been much weaker than her sisters' had exploded, literally, freeing her of her bonds and causing a portion of the roof to falling, crushing the alter and, once again, burying Arame. Appearing to move faster than light, Akane jumped in front of the energy ball meant for Ranma. Accepting the sacrifice with arms wide open, the ball impacted with her body, exploding on contact.

The bright flash caused Ranma to avert his eyes momentarily. When he was able to look again, he saw his fiancée before him, badly bruised and singed, but still standing with outstretched arms. "A-Akane?" he called tentatively.

Lifelessly, her arms fell to her sides and her body went limp, falling forward.

"Akane!" Ranma called more urgently. Immediately forgetting his own condition, he crawled over to her and put her head in his lap. "C'mon, Akane, this ain't funny! Wake up!" He patted her face, trying to get her to regain consciousness. It didn't work. Her eyes remained closed and from the stillness of her chest, it didn't appear she was breathing.

Everything about real men not crying went out the window. Ranma held his fiancée's lifeless body to his chest and he began sobbing openly. "C'mon...wake up you dummy...WAKE UP!"

"Do you mind not yelling in my ear? I'm not deaf, you know..."

He nearly jumped out of his skin as she spoke to him. Not thinking, he dropped her, her head hitting the ground with a loud thud, and crawled back to the wall.

Akane sat up and rubbed the back of her head, "Well, that was some thank you..."

"A-Akane! You...you..." He was so sure she was dead, in that instant; he contemplated living the rest of his life without her. Even in his imagination, he knew he couldn't. He didn't know how or when it happened, but Akane became an integral part in his life. They made two halves of one whole...without one; the other would wither and die as well.

Seeing her alive and looking at him with those beautiful brown eyes, filled his heart with so much emotion, he couldn't hold it in...so, he didn't. "You...you incredible IDIOT! You could've...you SHOULD'VE been killed by that blast. WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?"

"Silly me, I was thinking about saving your life!" Akane shot back.

"You should've stayed out of it instead of risking your life like that," went Ranma. "I had everything under control!"

At that point, Arame dug herself out from underneath the rubble again. She made herself ready for another attack, but was immediately put aback, seeing the young couple angrily in love fighting each other.

"Oh, I see," returned Akane. "I guess you had a plan all along, right?"

Arame walked up to them and stared waving, "Hello?"

"Of course," said Ranma.

"I suppose that plan was to get blown to bits by that blast so that you could haunt her as a ghost or something?" taunted Akane.

"No. Looked like the stupid plan you came up with, though," countered Ranma.

"Excuse me!" Arame tried to interrupt again. "Evil demon over here...wants to torment and kill you? Remember?"

"BUTT OUT!" Ranma and Akane yelled in unison, punching Arame back into the wall of rubble, burying her for a third time.

That was it. Another explosion and Arame cleared away all of the rubble surrounding her. The energy she commanded didn't dissipate for her next attack; instead, it intensified in magnitude. It increased to such a level, the ground began to shake. "Playtime's over, kids! I'm ending this fight now! I didn't want to kill you so quickly, but you've pushed me too far!" With all of the explosions and cave-ins, the cavern had become very unstable. The rocks up on the roof began to fall in on them.

"She's going to bring the whole cave down on us," yelled Akane. "And she's blocking the way out! What do we do?"

"I still have the dragon blast," said Ranma. "But without the hot ki, I can't make it work. Even if I did, if she sees it comin' she's just gonna dodge again."

"I think I can take care of both of those problems. I'm counting on you!" Akane gave Ranma a thumbs up, which he returned. Akane flared her red-hot ki to its fullest and launched herself at Arame. In mid 'flight', she began to spin, causing the super heated air in her wake to form a compact spiral. Akane tried to land a punch on Arame's face, but she ducked, letting Akane go harmlessly over her head.

"Since you're in such a hurry to die, little girl," said Arame, "I'll gladly oblige you!"

"RANMA! NOW!"

Arame turned back too late, as Ranma, standing in Akane's still superheated wake, pulled off his finishing move, "HIRYU KORIN DAN!"

The flash of cold from his Soul of Ice cut through the superheated air like a knife, puncturing her equally cold heart, while the clash of the contrasting air pressures created a compact, yet extremely powerful tornado, that ripped into her. It drilled her back into the demolished wall, forcing her through even deeper into the mass of rock. Though the cause of the tremors had ceased, the damage was too extensive for the cavern to take. The cave in continued, unabated.

"We've got to get out of here!" ordered Akane. "Can you make it, Ranma?"

"Yeah!" he said, running as fast as his drained form could. "Let's go!"

----+----

The night was done, and the sun was working its way up the eastern horizon. The students and teachers were already filing their way onto the school grounds, getting ready for another day of learning. Mousse was still in back of the school with Autumn. On his way out to get her help, she regained consciousness and refused to leave until she knew whether the battle was won or lost. Unable to change her mind, Mousse remained with her.

One of the early arrivals, Hikaru Gosunkugi, was working his way towards the back as well. He passed Mousse and Autumn, on his way back to the abandoned shed. He wasn't sure why they were just sitting there on the soccer field, but didn't spend too much time worrying about it. He was anxious to get back to the shed and try to make another summoning. He hoped this time, his efforts would prove more fruitful.

"Hey!" yelled Mousse. "Where are you going?"

"Huh?" Gosunkugi turned around, "A-are you talking to me?"

Mousse stood up and walked over to him. "Yes, I'm talking to you. This area isn't safe. You have to leave now."

"You see that shed?" Autumn said in a raspy voice, pointing to the very shed which was his destination. "There's a very dangerous creature there! If you're not careful, you could get hurt!"

A dangerous creature? It must've worked after all! Though, without him to claim it as its master, it must be running amok. He had to get down there to make sure it didn't hurt anyone other than Ranma.

Inexplicably, the ground began to shake. Earthquakes were a common occurrence in Japan to be sure, but for it to be happening now was an extraordinary stroke of bad luck. Suddenly, the door to the shed flew open. Akane ran out first with Kuno on her back with Ranma following closely behind her carrying a human Taro on his. "GET AWAY FROM HERE! HURRY!"

Heeding his warning, Autumn, Mousse and Gosunkugi ran further away from the shed. The ground that they were once sitting upon began to break apart and it sloped in on itself. At the epicenter of the tremor, the ground underneath the abandoned shed opened up, completely swallowing it. Once the shed was gone, the 'earthquake' ended.

After sneaking a peek at the carnage, Ranma and Akane looked at each other with wide grins on their faces, elated that they, once again, emerged from danger unscathed.

"Oh Ranma!" Akane gave Ranma a glomp Shampoo would've been proud of.

"AAACK! Watch the ribs!" Ranma yelled. So they emerged from danger nearly unscathed.

"It's good to see you," said Autumn. "I'm glad you made it out okay."

Akane gave Ranma a warm smile, "I owe it to you. You saved my life yet again. Thank you."

Ranma gave Akane's hand a squeeze, "Couldn't have done it without ya."

Gosunkugi's head dropped. Not only was his creature defeated before he could even claim it, but it looked as though his goddess, Akane was actually in love with that swine Ranma. He wondered how he would be able to function in school that day with such a large dagger in his heart.

Mousse smiled too at the irony of the situation. After all that time he wanted Ranma to give his heart to Akane so that Shampoo would finally give up on him. But now that he was the one to give up, Ranma and Akane appeared to have finally accepted each other. Mousse stopped, considering what he was just thinking. He didn't know when it happened, but it seemed as though he finally made his decision. He considered the consequences of his decision as well, but the thought of them didn't faze him much. Looked like he was due one last conversation with Cologne. Putting his mind back on the situation at hand, Mousse gave Taro's limp form a nudge with is foot, "Did you really have to bring these two back up also?"

"Of course," said Akane. "We couldn't just leave them down there."

Mousse looked at her, "Why not?"

Akane opened her mouth to answer, but couldn't come up with one. She looked at Ranma and he merely shrugged his shoulders. "Erm...I'll get back to you on that when I can think of a good answer."

The four teens stood to their feet and began to hobble off of the school property, leaving Kuno and Taro unconscious on the ground and Gosunkugi wallowing in self-pity. Autumn and Ranma would need medical attention as soon as possible for their injuries. Unfortunately, they didn't get far before the ground started rumbling again.

"Now what?"

As had happened a few times before during battle, a light appeared from the center of the crater where the shed was swallowed. The ground exploded sending debris flying everywhere, and a figure jumped from the center of the light and landed at the crater's mouth.

Arame looked at the group of teens and smiled, "You missed me, didn't you?"

"Aw, damn...not again!" groaned Ranma.

Immediately, Arame went on the attack again, firing an energy ball at the group of teens. Each ducked, and the fireball passed over their heads, coming into contact with the main building of the high school, obliterating it completely. The growing number of Furinkan's student body stared blankly as their school was reduced to ash. They suddenly broke out in cheers and had an impromptu party. "Gee, I hope Principal Kuno was inside," said one of the celebrating students.

"You kids," went Arame. "Why don't you have the common decency to die when I try to kill you? Huh? Well, let's see how you do against THIS!" Arame raised her hands above her head and began building up her power. Suddenly, a gigantic monster, about as tall as the main building used to be, appeared behind her. Its appearance was similar to Taro's; only it was completely red and had no wings, tentacles or snake tail.

"Oh no!" said Autumn. "She summoned a helper!"

"Just fighting her was bad enough," added Akane. "How in the world are we supposed to fight that thing?"

Arame laughed manically, "Now, DIE!"

The giant creature stretched out its monstrous hand. The teens got themselves as ready as they could for what promised to be a crushing blow, but it never came. Instead, the creature used its hand to encase Arame in a cage of light.

The giant aura that surrounded Arame went away, "What...what is the meaning of this?" She turned around and audibly gasped, noticing the large creature herself for the first time.

"Arame!" the creature boomed. "So there you are. You are nearly twenty-five years late for work. For such gross negligence to your duties, you will be punished severely!" The monster closed its fist and on command, Arame disappeared in a ball of light, cage and all.

"NOOOOOOO!" screamed her disembodied voice.

In another ball of light, the giant creature made a giant clipboard with the DemCo logo on the back materialize. It put on a pair of glasses and read a few lines from a piece of paper attached to the front. "Is there a Hikaru Gosunkugi here?"

"I'm Hikaru Gosunkugi," he squeaked, looking up at the fearsome beast.

"I'm terribly sorry about the mix-up," the creature said. "One of our new employees completely screwed up your summoning, bringing Arame here without authorization." He took out a fiery pen and scribbled something down on the paper. Ripping it off he let it drop and in yet another ball of light, the paper shrunk to a size manageable for a human. "Here, this coupon is good for one free summoning. You can get what you want without having to sell your soul in return. And thanks again for your patronage." With a bow, the monster disappeared back into the ground.

The strip of paper landed in Gosunkugi's hand. "Wow...this sounds like a really good deal!" The sound of cracking knuckles behind him made Gosunkugi go pale...paler than usual that is.

"So," started Ranma, "this whole mess was your fault, hmm?" Ranma grabbed Gosunkugi by the scruff of his jacket and reared his fist back.

"Ranma! Stop! Don't do that to him!" ordered Akane. Ranma humphed and let the smaller teen go. Before Gosunkugi could go anywhere, Akane grabbed him in Ranma's place, "Let me!"

"AAAAAAAAAH!"

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----


	10. Chapter 10

Within the district of Nerima, destruction of public property at the hands of various martial artists with extraordinary abilities was common. The city government needed to do something in order to keep all of the town facilities going. Hence the creation of a crack team of construction workers that were able to repair structures almost as quickly as they were destroyed. It would take martial artists to undo the damage done by martial artists, which is why N-MARC was created.

Thanks to the quick work of Nerima's Martial Arts Repair Crew, it only took one week for Furinkan High School to be reconstructed. Much to the dismay of Furinkan's student body, not only was the school back in business, but their principal was right at the front door to greet them with more threats of buzz cuts for boys and bowl cuts for girls.

Among the students taking the long walk back to their classes, one Hikaru Gosunkugi hobbled in on crutches, covered almost head to toe with bandages. He thought back on the memory of his beloved Akane giving him the beating of a lifetime. He smiled, reveling in the fact that she actually touched him. Hopefully, her touch won't result in so many broken bones next time.

Also, among the throng of students heading back to school was one Tatewaki Kuno. Unfortunately, the kendoist was suffering from missing time. He couldn't recall how he came back to town from his sojourn. He didn't know why he woke up that time in the middle of Furinkan's soccer field so tired, nor the reason why his alma mater was burned to the ground. No doubt, that knave, Ranma Saotome had something to do with both.

During the time school was being rebuilt, however, he came upon an interesting discovery while practicing. He raised his bokken, focusing into it. It began to glow a light blue, with electrical bolts crackling from it randomly. With a smile, he lowered his bokken back to his side. It seemed as though the heavens themselves had imparted him with a gift. Truly, he had earned the moniker of Blue Thunder. He couldn't wait until his next meeting with Saotome. With his new power, he would smite the foul being for sure. The mere thought of it caused Kuno to laugh manically. As they usually did, the other students gave him a wide berth.

Looked like it was going to be another typical day.

Dreamweaver Studios Presents

Ranma½

Legacy

Epilogue

Mousse sat in his room, contemplating his decision again, along with its consequences. There was no doubt in his mind what was going to happen once he said what he was going to do. Once he made his intentions known, he knew there wouldn't be any turning back. Reaching into his sleeve, he pulled out a locket with his favorite picture of Shampoo. He smiled, fingering the ornate carvings that framed the tiny picture.

"Well, no sense putting this off any longer..."

He returned the locket back to its place in the subspace beneath his robes and stood to his feet. With one last look around, he went through his door and downstairs to the restaurant. As usual, Shampoo was wiping off the last of the dining tables, getting ready for the breakfast crowd.

"Good morning, Shampoo," said Mousse.

Shampoo looked over to him and nodded her reply. "Shampoo finish wiping down the tables. You just open door, okay?"

With a nod, Mousse undid the lock to the front door and slid it open, marking to the rest of the world the Cat Café was ready for business. Taking a deep breath, Mousse asked, "Where's Cologne?"

"Great Grandmother? She in kitchen."

"Thanks."

Shampoo tilted her head to the side. It was odd enough that Mousse hadn't been clawing at her for the last couple of weeks, but for him to actively seek out her great grandmother? This was quite bizarre. She wondered if it had anything to do with that girl from the enemy tribe. Unable to help herself, after Mousse entered the kitchen, she went to the door to eavesdrop.

The kitchen was a delight for the senses. With 3000 years of Amazon culinary history on her side, Cologne was able to tantalize the pallets of her customers with flavors never dreamt of before. With her uncanny speed and senses, she was able to prepare numerous dishes at once, to perfection. Even while busy with the preparation of breakfast, she was able to detect Mousse's presence.

"Yes, boy? What is it?"

Unfazed by her addressing him without even turning to see who it was, Mousse informed her, "I've finally made my decision."

This caused Cologne to pause and give him her full attention. "Go on."

Mousse paused for a moment. Even though he knew what he wanted to do, he still found the words fighting to keep from being verbalized. Finally, he just came out and said it, "I want to be with Autumn."

"I see," said Cologne. "You know what this means, right?"

"Yes. It is not permitted for us to be married, as we are from enemy tribes." Mousse paused a moment more, perhaps thinking if he didn't say the words, it wouldn't be real. But it was too late, whether he said the words or not. "If I want to follow through with our engagement, as the one who started it by defeating her, I must renounce my position as a part of our tribe...and I do."

Cologne nodded and gave him a sad smile, "I can tell the words were hard for you to say."

"They were. I may not have seen eye to eye with the tribal elders on many things, but the tribe has always been my home. I wish I didn't have to give up my past in order to pursue my future."

"It was a difficult decision to have to make. I certainly don't envy you for having to face it." Cologne checked on one of the soup pots on the stove and turned the fire down under it. "It takes a strong man to make such a hard choice. I wish we didn't have to loose such a strong man, but you do have to follow your own path."

"Huh," went Mousse. "That's a surprise. I always thought you hated me."

Cologne laughed. "Hated you? Really, boy, do you really think I would allow you to live with us, let you follow through with your schemes to take Shampoo for yourself if I hated you?"

"Er..."

"I know I've been extra hard on you since you've been here, but you needed it. I absolutely hated to see such potential go to waste. And the way you were chasing Shampoo...groveling and sniveling at her feet...it was disgusting. I was hoping that with you here, you'd become a real man, a person any woman, Amazon or not, would be proud to call her husband. And I must say, you've made real progress, since you've been here. Your many battles with Ranma have sharpened your skills to a point, and you're a lot less whiney too, thankfully."

"Whiney?"

"However," Cologne continued, "I've noticed that your progress had slowed down. You had become too focused on splitting Ranma and Shampoo and your skills haven't made any noticeable improvement. If you were still with the tribe, you would've learned many advanced techniques, by now. But you had tunnel vision...none of those other things mattered to you. If anything, that Autumn girl freed you from that and you're able to see these things for yourself again. It's my hope that now that you're free from Shampoo and Ranma's shadow and are starting on your own path, you will improve and live up to the potential I've always seen in you."

Mousse was speechless. He had no idea she thought so much of him. All he could think of to do was bow to her, "T-thank you..."

"Mousse."

"Hmm?"

-BOP!-

He rubbed the sore spot on the back of his head where she hit him with her cane. "HEY! WHAT IN THE WORLD DID YOU DO THAT FOR?" For some unexplained reason, his eyes began to burn. He took off his extra thick glasses and rubbed his eyes. When he opened them, he found he could still see without his glasses. He looked around with his eyes wide, not believing what he was experiencing. "I don't believe it! I...I can see! What did you do?"

"It's a gift," said Cologne. "The part of the brain that controls your optic sensory is located in the back of your head. It was an easy matter of striking the correct pressure spot with enough force to correct your impairment."

He picked up an empty can and tried to read it. "I can tell this is a can of something now. Though I can't read what's on the label unless I hold it close to my face."

"Chances are your vision is so bad, you'll always need glasses. At least you won't be blind without them."

"I...I don't know what to say..."

"Thanks would be a good start," she said.

"Thanks!"

"Oh, and before I forget..." She went into her robes and pulled out a scroll. "Here."

"What's this?"

"The scrolls containing the advanced skills of your fighting style. You've earned these."

He bowed again, this time keeping an eye on her to be sure she doesn't bop him on the head again, "Thank you, elder...for everything."

"You are quite welcome, boy. Now go on. Your new life awaits." Again, Mousse bowed to her and, putting the scroll into his robe, he left the Nekohaten for the last time. 'I am proud of you, boy. As Shampoo's great grandmother, I'm bound to help her get the husband of her choice in any way I can. Even still, a part of me wished you could've won her over. She's as blind as you were. Perhaps one day something will force her to open her eyes as has happened to you.'

----+----

Mousse was gone?

FINALLY! One of her obstacles was gone! Shampoo was so elated; she did a traditional tribal dance of joy. When the first customer came in, she gave him the biggest, warmest smile she had ever given anyone. In fact, business was very good that day; the extra 'bouncy' service Shampoo was giving that day drew in customers from off the streets.

So she was losing the best friend she ever had...someone who's been there for her since childhood. Her smile faltered slightly.

She shook her head clear and beamed brightly at everyone who came in. What did that matter as long as, in the end, she and Ranma were together?

Just three obstacles left.

----+----+----+----+----

Somewhere in spirit world, well outside the perceptions of normal humans, was what appeared to be a large, bustling city where the DemCo home offices resided. Deep in the bowls of the cluster of buildings was what could only be described as stable. Each stable had a different sort of demonic beast the company kept...some were the pets of DemCo employees, others were used for really nasty jobs DemCo would occasionally be commissioned with.

And on the subject of 'nasty jobs', for her punishment, Arame was assigned the job of cleaning that stable. For this job, she wore a barely there DemCo issued janitor's uniform and used what looked to be a toothbrush for the actual cleaning.

She had just finished her work for the day and had plopped herself down next to the entrance back into the main complex. She was tired and covered in a thick, dried layer of filth. Of course, that's the condition one usually ends up in after you clean up after a three-headed hellhound the size of a horse. She doubted she'd ever be clean again.

"Enjoying your new assignment?" teased a male demon, walking into the stable eating a snack bar. "Whew...what an interesting smell you've discovered."

"Ha ha...very funny, Saishi," Arame deadpanned. "It's those damned Tendos...from Moriko down to that Akane girl. I wouldn't be in this predicament if not for them. If they would've just died like they were supposed to..." She trembled in anger. "I'm not done with them. I promise you, I will have my revenge against them all!"

"Sure. Right after you're done with your 500 year assignment of cleaning Cerberus poo." He finished the snack bar and dropped the wrapper next to Arame's feet. "You missed a spot."

"-Grumble-"

----+----+----+----+----

----+----+----+----+----

-fin


End file.
